


A Party is Just a Group of Adventurers

by SilentWaves



Category: Assassination Classroom
Genre: Action & Romance, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Drunken Confessions, Drunken Shenanigans, Everyone Is Alive, Gen, Killing, M/M, at least everyone important, but just because of villains and monsters, koro q elements, listen... i just wanted to write a fantasy au and i did it, nagisa is the chosen one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-26
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:46:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 32,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22914205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilentWaves/pseuds/SilentWaves
Summary: Nagisa is the new Chosen One and he needs to figure out how to kill the Big Bad. Karma tries to figure out hisnot-sonewfound feelings. Gakushuu is just trying to get as rich as possible.orI really wanted to see these boys in an rpg fantasy setting... so I did it.
Relationships: Akabane Karma/Asano Gakushuu, Irina Jelavić/Karasuma Tadaomi (background)
Comments: 24
Kudos: 100





	1. New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Not gonna lie, this is probably going to get kinda long? Since the first chapter is _very_ introductory and is already 8k+ words? 
> 
> But anyways, I had fun writing this and I hope y'all enjoy!

There was a _woosh_ , and Nagisa suddenly finds himself standing in a very strange place.

“Nagisa Shiota?” A voice rings through the seemingly endless darkness.

Nagisa looks around, but couldn’t see anything. There was a single light source in the room, not illuminating much.

The voice clears their throat, “I _said_ , are you Nagisa Shiota?”

“Yes?” Nagisa says, noting that his voice doesn’t sound muffled, so either this was a very clear dream or he got kidnapped by some very non-threatening kidnappers.

“Great!” The light begins to move. “I’m Kayano, and I’ll be your guide fairy for the duration of your quest. Please pick a starting class.”

The light illuminates some items that Nagisa could have sworn weren’t there before. Suddenly, he was staring at a sword, a staff, and a spellbook. 

“Are those real?” Nagisa asks, feeling a bit silly for asking. “I mean, obviously they’re real, but what do they do?”

“The sword can be enchanted with special effects, chosen once you select the fighter class. The staff is used for supporting your allies, but you don’t want that. All the Chosen Ones who pick the staff end up dying within a few hours,” The light moves again, as though Nagisa understood what was happening. Chosen Ones? Dying? If this was a kidnapping, shouldn’t they have mentioned ransom or threats already?

“And the spellbook is for mages. It requires a lot of focus and hard work to master, but you’ll be practically unstoppable once you can do it!”

“I’m sorry, um, Kayano-san,” Nagisa begins. “But can you please explain why you brought me here? Do you need money? Because I’m not out of school yet so I don’t have a full-time job, and nobody would be willing to pay you for ransom…”

“Hmm? Ok, first off, my name’s Kayano. Just Kayano, not Kayanosan,” The light flashes, as though irritated that they have to explain something so apparently simple to such a smart-looking fellow. “And there’s no need for a ‘ransom’, silly! If anything, there’s only a reward for finishing the quest! _If_ you finish the quest, that is.”

“Quest?”

“Huh. I guess you otherworlders wouldn’t know, huh? Oh well, I’m sure you’ll find someone to explain it to you once we’re in Rheyar. And then I’ll take you to Catopolis, the capital, and you can get some equipment there.”

“Rheyar? Otherworlders?”

“Stop asking so many questions, Nagisa, you’ll probably figure it out on your own anyways. Just pick a class, please. Holding you in this interdimensional hole takes a lot of magical power, you know!” 

“Uh, sure,” so Nagisa grabs the sword, knowing that this is probably all a dream, and he’ll wake up soon enough if he goes along with what this light tells him to do.

As soon as Nagisa’s hand clasps around the sword, a blinding light envelops the room. He feels a bit nauseous, and kind of wants to throw up, but then just before he’s about to pass out from the strong feeling of vertigo, the world rights itself. 

There’s chatter. A lot of it. And not only that, but animal sounds (horses, cats, and some weird calls that Nagisa has never heard before) and some sounds not unlike those in video games when a spell is cast. 

Nagisa blinks a few times, then stands up (not aware that he was lying down in the first place). He comes face to face with a small green-haired pixie floating not two inches from his nose.

“Are all otherworlders such bums? Get up, please. If you can’t handle a simple teleportation spell, how do you plan on defeating the Big Bad?” It has the same voice as Kayano, the floating light from earlier. “Gosh, summoning a hero from another world really takes quite some energy outta you!”

“Ok, Kayano. Please listen,” Nagisa blinks a few more times. “I have final exams coming up, so if this is some elaborate prank that my classmates put you up to, please get it over with an let me go back to my studying.”

“Studying? What kinds of skills are you studying for?”

“Well I have math, and I’m already struggling in that class, and there’s Japanese, where we have to read this collection of poems-”

“Japanese?” Kayano interrupts. “What’s that?”

“Are you not speaking Japanese right now?”

“No, I’m speaking Eyarian. You were speaking in some other language, so I also cast a translator spell on you. You’re welcome!”

“Hmm. Sure.” Nagisa looks around. “But then, where are we? Some kind of theatre? One of those repurposed old places that people use for education people on olden times? And where did you put my phone?”

“Phone? You mean this?” Kayano holds up the device. “I don’t think your world’s magic works here. I’ve tried everything, but it just stays a black box.”

“Alright. Great. Mom’s totally going to kill me, but that’s fine.” Nagisa pinches himself. It hurts. He looks around again, trying to see if any actors are giving away their role. None are, and they truly seem like they’ve lived here their whole lives. Nagisa has a realization.

“Wait, you mean,” Nagisa takes a deep breath. “That this really is a different world? With magic and ogres and all that?”

“Well, sure. You mean you don’t have magic in your-whoa!” Kayano stops speaking as Nagisa begins running down the street.

“And I’m the Chosen One? So I’ll become, like, a hero here! And I can never worry about school or my mom ever again?” Nagisa toys with his hair, already imagining getting it all chopped off.

“Well, only if you surviv-”

“And I can _actually do magic_??” Nagisa begins snapping his fingers, hoping for a spark or a flame. Nothing happens.

“No, only mage and cleric classes can-”

“Wow, look at that! Is that a real potions shop with _actual potions_?” Nagisa begins walking over.

“That’s Gakushuu’s shop, he wouldn’t dare sell counterfeit-”

“Then let’s go! What’s the currency here? Gold pieces? Ingots?”

“We use Golden Medals of Rhea. Just ‘gold’ is fin-”

“Do you have any on you? I’ll pay you back once I defeat the Big Bad and get the reward.”

“You should have some in your inventory. Just reach into your pocket-”

“Great! Thanks for all your help, Kayano!” 

“Wait, Nagisa! I’m your guide for the whole quest!” Kayano shouts, but Nagisa was already at the professional-looking potions store.

“Hello? Is this where I can buy a real potion?” Nagisa calls, but was only met with the sounds of an argument.

“You poisoned me!” Person A says.

“I would do no such thing,” Person B responds. “When would I have had the chance? Or the motive?”

“You always have a motive, Karma.” So person B’s name was Karma. “You’ve been nothing but a dirty prankster since we met!” 

“Why, thank you, Shuu,” person A’s name was Shoe? Shoe and Karma? Nagisa guesses it wouldn’t be unrealistic in a real fantasy world. “And I am sure glad that I visited your shop today to get accused of poison.”

“You poisoned me and you know it!” Shoe says, a notch louder. “Who else would have thought to put hot-salamander peppers in my Wake-Up brew?”

Nagisa walks over to the side entrance, where two men, at the age where they would have just graduated university, were bickering with such an intensity that Nagisa hesitated to approach them. 

“Don’t worry, the amount of acedonia in your brew would cancel out the salamander blood anyways. It wouldn’t have hurt you in any way,” Karma nods.

“How did you- You’re not even trying to fake innocence anymore!”

“Well, if I’m going to be playing along with your completely false accusations, I may as well let you know that you’re not in any danger.”

Shoe sighs. “Seriously, what am I going to do with you?”

Karma perks up at this, “Wellll, you could take me to the bar again. I _have_ heard that a very specific somebody will be performing tonight.”

“You’re not coming.”

“Aww, but Shuu-y, you always invite me!” 

“That was until you decided I needed hot-salamander pepper in my morning brew. Consider this payback.”

Karma pouts for a bit, then grins in a way that reminds Nagisa of a demon. “Well, it’s not like I won’t be able to go anyways. The guards all know me, and even if they don’t let me in… well, I didn’t pick up those rogue skills for nothing.”

Shoe sighs again. “This is not my loss, by the way. I’d personally recommend, friend to friend, that you should start watching out for-oh”

Shoe makes eye contact with Nagisa, as though he hasn’t been standing there for the past 5 minutes.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t notice you there,” Shoe walks over to his store counter, and mutters to himself, “…could have sworn I had a human detection spell set up…”

“Oh, don’t worry about it, Magician-san!” Nagisa smiles in that practiced calm way. “I was just brought here, and I would like a potion, please!”

Shoe quickly looks him over, probably assassins him, “You’re new here, correct? So allow me to aid you in your purchase.”

“That’d be great, thanks.” Nagisa leans over the counter a bit as Shoe pulls out a heavy-looking book from under the desk and slides on a pair of glasses. “Are these all the potions you sell here?”

“What are you looking for? Perk-up? Health restore? Mana expansion? If I don’t carry something you need, I can always set aside some time to brew up a custom batch. Of course, that’s assuming it’s a logical request, and the pay would be a tad higher, for sure.”

“Anything.”

“Anything is a bit vague.”

“Hey Shuu!” Karma walks inside the shop. “You heard the customer, he says anything. The customer is always right, so I guess if you can’t find ‘anything’, then you should leave it to me!”

“Hell no.” Shoe says. “Listen sir, if you allow him to select a potion for you, you’ll be liquified and evaporated at the same time, or made to speak backwards for the next 24 hours, or something just as crazy. Not choosing his choice is for your own good, I promise.”

“Well honestly, I’ve never been able to speak backwards before. So if I drink a specific potion, I’ll suddenly learn?”

Shoe tilts his head a bit. “Sir,”

“Nagisa. Nagisa Shiota.”

“Right,” Shoe adjusts his glasses. “Nagisa, if I’m correct, you have no idea how potions work, do you?”

“Nope, sorry.”

“And you don’t come from a merchant family? You certainly don’t dress like it.”

“I didn’t even know old-school merchants still existed.”

"Karma,” Shoe looks over at him. “Do you think…”

“Well, what else could it be?” Karma replies. “I don’t see any other possible way, unless he lost his memory or something.”

“But that would easily be fixed with a Memo-Repair spell, or a Feel-Better potion.”

“Right, but you know health potions are only sort of effective.”

“That’s untrue, and you know it.”

“Well how do you know they _do_ work?”

“I- ok. Wait. We’re getting very off-topic. Nagisa, was it?” Shoe stares intensely into Nagisa’s eyes. Are his eyes violet? Nobody has that colour eye naturally, so maybe he’s wearing contacts? But then Nagisa supposes that if this were a magical world, changing one’s eye colour probably isn’t that big of a deal.

“Are you from another world?”

Nagisa’s eyes widen, wondering how this man figured it out so fast. Then, he quickly calms himself back down. “Yes, actually. I’m from a place called Earth.”

“Don’t play dumb with us, blueberry-head,” Karma says, approaching him. “We all live on Earth, that kinda shit stopped being funny in first year of junior knight training.”

“Oh, no, that’s not what I meant.” Nagisa backs away, not wanting to make an enemy of this very intimidating person. “I just want to know where I can buy a potion, please,”

Shoe narrows his eyes, “And your clothes are made of Eastern materials.”

Karma chips in, “ _And_ , they’re in a weird fashion. Who’d be dumb enough to come down to Catopolis without proper armor?”

Shoe turns back around to look at Karma, “This midget _cannot_ be our Saviour. Look at how skinny his arms are, he would barely be able to kill a pig.”

Nagisa looks down at himself. He was never _weak_ , per say, strong enough to defend himself against some upperclassmen at least. But looking at these guys, older and decidedly much more powerful (most likely due to training their whole lives), Nagisa realizes that his physique in this world is probably more akin to that of a child’s.

“Oh, shut up, Shuu. Stop trying to be all scary. The kid can build up muscle.” Karma looks at Nagisa, scanning him, “D’you have any cool powers in that sword of yours?”

“Oh, this?” Nagisa holds up his sword, forgetting that he had it in the first place. Whenever he let go, it seemed to naturally fall back into a sheath on his waist. “I just got it. I wouldn’t know.”

“Hit me.” Karma says. “We can set up a formal match to test out how strong our Chosen One is--ow!” 

Shoe had just hit him square on the arm. “You just met him and you’re already itching for a fight? Can’t you find something better to do, like, I dunno, introduce yourself first?”

“I notice _you_ haven’t said anything about yourself either, hypocrite.”

Shoe turns around, scowling. “I’m Gakushuu Asano. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, and I apologize for my companion here.”( _oops, not Shoe, it’s Gakushuu_ , Nagisa mentally corrects)

“Hi! I’m Shiota Nagisa, er, Nagisa Shiota since you guys say your names backwards here.” Nagisa holds out his hand, hiding his embarrassment because _of course nobody would be called ‘Shoe’ how ridiculous is that_ , when a realization struck him. “Wait, did you say Gakushuu?”

“Huh. You pronounced it right.” Gakushuu says, turning to Karma. “If I recall correctly, and I do, it took even you a few times before you said my name the way it was meant to be said.”

“That’s because your dad’s a freak, and decided to pick a random-ass name from a weird scroll in the library.” Karma retorts.

“If your name’s Gakushuu, then you must know Japanese!” Nagisa says. “Do you come from my world too?”

Gakushuu frowns. “No. I was born and raised here. If I was from another world, then maybe _I_ would have been the Chosen One. Evidently, I am not.”

Karma began laughing. “So your dad decided to pick a name from some other world? One where we don’t know the language that well? That’s fun. Maybe it means ‘shity personality’, or something.”

“Uh, well, probably not.” Nagisa says, trying to avoid Gakushuu’s glare. “Though I’d have to see the kanji to be sure.”

“The what?” Karma asks. “Is that some kind of food?”

“SPEAKING OF FOOD!” The three of them turn to see Kayano flying through the door. “Nagisa! You owe me _a lot_ of pudding! There’s a proper order to do this kind of thing! I had to go to the travel center and fill in your entrance application for you, so that you wouldn’t be deemed a minion of the Dark Lord. Thank goodness that all the important stuff is held here in Catopolis, or I’d be _way_ angrier right now.”

“Hey Kayano, how’s it goin’?” Karma says. Nagisa assumes that he and Kayano were probably acquainted. And by extension, Gakushuu probably was too. “If you’re getting pudding, bring me along. I can even take some back for Gakushuu, to make up for his Wake-Up brew this morning.”

“Bastard.” Gakushuu says, but without any malice behind the insult. “If you’re going, get me the regular. And you’re paying for it.”

“Well, fine. But at least invite me to the bar tonight, Shuu!”

“Ugh, you’re going to show up anyways, even if you’re not invited.”

Karma sticks out his tongue, “you know me so well! I’ll give you your pudding after the song, then.”

“Alright, quit flirting already.” Kayano says, her light growing brighter with indignation, “Let’s go for lunch now.”

“I thought you said you wanted pudding?” Nagisa asks, but waves goodbye to Gakushuu and walks out of the shop with Kayano and Karma.

“Well, obviously. But pudding goes best with this restaurant's Monster Stew.” Kayano sighs dreamily. She shifts to becoming human sized, so she could walk with them. Nagisa wonders why she didn’t do this earlier, then realizes that her wings disappear when she’s not in pixie form. 

“Nah, don’t listen to her. If we’re going to eat there, the Pig Noodles are the best.” Karma argues.

“Well, sure, the noodles are good, but they’re too slurpy! You have to save the slurp for the pudding!”

“You’re not supposed to slurp pudding, Kayano. Pudding is obviously meant to be chewed.”

“No! Then you lose the texture!”

“You don’t need texture to enjoy it.”

“For _pudding_?”

As the two playfully argue, Nagisa takes the time to look around him. He may not have been here for very long, but he already prefers this world to his own. Call him basic, or boring, but high school was never all that great in his opinion. He could never make any male friends because they thought his unwanted feminine appearance somehow made them less masculine, and he never made any female friends because he was scared that it would encourage his mom. 

Speaking of, Nagisa tugs at his hair again, hating how long it was and how trapped in his mom’s net it made him feel. He didn’t hate his mother, even though he knows that he had every right to. But he would at least like to be his own person--more than just a copy. He might eventually miss his mother, but he also has no desire to see her again.

“By the way, guys.” Nagisa stops walking, and the argument between his two companions stops for a second. “Can we stop by somewhere else first? It won’t take long, I promise!”

“Where do you want to go?” Kayano asks.

“Somewhere I can get my hair cut.”

Kayano nods, and leads him there. The doors of the barber shop were squeaky and the lights were dim, but in Nagisa’s eyes, the place looked like freedom.

* * *

This was Nagisa’s first lunch without his hair falling in his face. It felt unreal, even more so than the stored filled with magic potions or the legendary sword strapped to his waist.

“How’s the food, Nagisa?” Kayano says, while eagerly drinking her stew. 

Nagisa looks down on his own. Gakushuu from the store said to not trust Karma, and even though he’s sure it was said in jest, he figured he’d be better off picking the same food as Kayano did. “It’s good. What’s in it?”

“They just killed a gang of orcs this morning, so we have water-broiled orc today!” Kayano says, triumphantly holding up a piece of orc meat from her bowl.

“Whaat?” Karma says. “Shuu loves orc! I’ll call him over. Order one for him, Kayano.”

Nagisa looks over at Karma, who’s pulled out a shiny orb. Probably magic. Really cool magic. Karma starts speaking into it, and Nagisa hears a _woosh_ , implying that the message was sent. _Olden-day texting. Neat. Maybe Karma could hook me up with a magic-orb-phone thingy of my own._

“He’s at work, Karma! You can’t just call him over whenever you want!” Kayano says, but she places the order anyways.

“Technically, I’m also supposed to be at work, but Itona’s covering. Besides, Shuu’s probably bored out his mind without me around.” Karma grins, joking.

Kayano laughs. “Doubt it. He’s always saying how ‘top notch’ his store is. He wouldn’t be bored trying to maintain perfecton.”

“He hasn’t changed at all since school.” Karma laughs with her. 

Nagisa feels a bit left out. They’ve probably known each other since forever, but he’s only been in this world for an hour. “Speaking of, I want to get to know you guys better!” He says.

“What about us?” Karma pauses to think. “I guess I haven’t formally introduced myself, huh? I’m Karma Akabane, local prodigy Weapons Maker and the best fighter in all of Rheyar.”

“Ugh, Karma you’ve got to stop introducing yourself like that!” Kayano turns to Nagisa. “Karma _used_ to hold the Catopolis Championship, but then stopped fighting because we encouraged him to get an actual job.”

“Hey, I’ll have you know that my championship trophy is still very valid, and I can still beat up a few kids if I want to.”

“Then Gakushuu’s gonna find out and beat _you_ up.”

“I’d like to see him try.”

“Anyways,” Kayano turns back to Nagisa, who’s thoroughly enjoying their friendly banter. “Nobody wanted Karma to work for them, ‘cause he’s a piece of shit--”

“I take that as a compliment, by the way,” Karma interrupts.

“--And he wouldn’t want to work under anyone anyways, especially not as a knight or something, so we helped him set up his own business.” Kayano finishes, patting Karma on the back.

“And Gakushuu just happened to have a store on the same street as you?” Nagisa asks.

“Sort of. It was his dad that got me the store location, and there just happened to be one near Shuu’s store.” Karma looks down to his orb-phone. It’s blinking, so Nagisa assumes that Gakushuu replied to Karma’s previous invitation.

“Who’s his dad?” Nagisa asks. _He must have been pretty powerful to just give someone a whole building and metal workshop._

“He’s the High Priest!” Kayano answers, since Karma’s busy fidgeting with his orb, probably arguing with Gakushuu on the other end.

“Is that important?” Nagisa wasn’t Catholic, or religious at all, but he’s respectful enough of those who were. Maybe this country put a lot of power in the church, or something.

“Oh, of course he is!” Kayano says. “He’s like, the only form of communication we have with the Goddess. She’s the one who blesses us with magic, as long as we kill the Big Bad every few years or so in return.”

“Huh.” Nagisa says. He supposes that magic wasn’t likely to have occurred naturally, and that in all the Fantasy RPGs he’s played, there’s always been a similar system. “Cool. So Gakushuu’s the son of someone really important? Then why’s he running a potions stop?”

Karma laughs, putting away his orb. “He’s not just running _a_ potions shop. He’s running _the_ potions shop. He plans on creating a business of science that gets rid of the need for magic in Rheyar, making his dad essentially useless.”

“Wouldn’t that also impact other businesses though? Like, Kayano, you wouldn’t be able to shrink and fly anymore. And Karma, don’t you need enchantments for your armours and weapons and stuff?” Nagisa says, even though he’s awed by Gakushuu’s ambition.

“Think of it this way.” Kayano begins, “Magic is always going to be important, because it’s way more convenient, and also free. But at least with Gakushuu’s potions, there’ll be less of a dependance on it.”

“So, sure, it’s definitely trying to kill out a market, it’s also not going to completely work.” Karma adds. “But it’s still enough that Gakuhou--that’s his dad, by the way--doesn’t get the same reverence that he once had.”

“A lot of mages with low mana reserves or non-magic wielders now prefer to buy potions,” Kayano says. “And since they make up around 75% of the population, it’s a pretty lucrative business. Gakushuu may have started his business out of spite, but it’s been helpful, since nobody’s done the same amount of research into potions as he has.”

“That’s cool.” Nagisa really does prefer this new world. After all, how many people from his Earth would have been able to develop an industry within a few years to compete with a system that’s been in place for (presumably) millenia? He was very curious about this place that he’s just been teleported to, and the people he’s just met. “So how do you guys know each other? School? What do they even teach at schools here?”

“Mostly bullshit,” Karma says. “All of the stuff that they teach is stuff we can figure out for ourselves, like magic or history or whatever. Arithmetic was not only easy, it was also useless. Geography’s just staring at map, etc.”

“Don’t even lie, Karma. There was one good teacher, Korosensei!” Kayano lightly punches Karma’s arm. “He was the best! Even Gakushuu learned stuff in that class, and he decided to study everything beforehand so that he’d have the best grades.”

Karma laughs, “Didn’t stop me from fighting him for top spot.”

“This one,” Kayano points to Karma, “and Gakushuu were always dueling. It would have been annoying if they weren’t so skilled in magic and swordsmanship.”

“You’ve got to show me sometime!” Nagisa realizes that if he’s going to be some kind of ‘Chosen One’, he should probably learn how to fight.

“Oh please, don’t encourage him.” Kayano says while Karma simply grins.

Nagisa smiles, and turns to Kayano, on her third bowl of stew. “What about you? What made you decide to become a Chosen One guide?”

“Well, I was in their class, and originally I was going to become an actress at that big theater nearby, but then we got a prophecy all of a sudden and… bam! Here I am!” Kayano says.

“Do you still want to be an actress?” From what he’s seen, Kayano isn’t someone looking for fame, so either she had a real passion for theater, or she just didn’t have anything else that interested her.

“Not really. I mean, I still get to sing with Shuu sometimes, and there’s not a lot of fae near the capital, since we prefer the woods and stuff, so they sometimes bring me on as supporting cast, but…” Kayano trails off. “Honestly, I get to spend more time with my sister and her husband, since there’s a lot of free time. I think I’m pretty happy with where I am in life right now, generally speaking.”

Karma sighs. “Her family’s all rich now. She’s getting hella bank for flying around and eating stew, her sister runs a daycare, and her sister’s husband was the former Chosen One, so he gets a fat stack of gold every month.”

“Woah, you mean I get _paid_ for this job?” Nagisa exclaims. 

“Of course, and the money is coming right out of my father’s pocket.” Gakushuu had just walked in, taking his seat and hovering his hand over the stew that Kayano had previously ordered for him. His hand glowed red, and a few seconds later, steam began to rise from the broth. “So make sure you do a decent job, alright?”

“Shuu! Got tired of being holed up in your store all day?” Karma says. “Or did you just miss me too much?”

“Did not,” Gakushuu says, though he seemed mostly occupied by his meal. “Ren’s watching the store, and I figured I’d take my lunch break.”

“We were just catching up Nagisa on ourselves!” Kayano says, waving a waiter over to order her anticipated pudding dessert.

“And I’d be correct to assume that Karma has already completely divulged my past?”

“You know it!” Karma sticks out his tongue playfully.

“What part did you get to?” Gakushuu looks up. “Maybe that time when I completely obliterated you in the sword-wielding class?”

“I was thinking we just stopped at the time I got higher marks than you in magic theory.”

Gakushuu _hmph_ ’d, mouth full with orc meat, then swallowed. “I don’t see why you took that class in the first place. You’re not a mage.”

“Same reason you took the swords class, despite mages having naturally lower strength.” Karma retorts.

“Whatever,” Gakushuu mutters, picking up the menu. “Doesn’t change the fact that this ‘naturally weak mage’ beat you in a duel.”

“You used magic! It’s obviously not a competition of pure strength, and your use of magic just… threw me off. That’s all. That win was a fluke.”

“Well then what about that time--” Gakushuu began.

“Guys, the pudding’s here! And also, Nagisa probably feels left out. Stop trying to show off, seriously.” Kayano turns to Nagisa. “After a while, you eventually hear all of their stories. They get dull real fast, but those two don’t seem to think so.”

So they dig into their pudding. Half-way through Kayano’s first (of many) cups, she proposes getting her brother-in-law, the former Chosen One, to teach Nagisa how to fight and wield his chosen weapon. Nagisa agrees, because he’s never learned how to properly fight in his world, being a pacifist and all. Also, because he was too scared of the retaliation he’d face from his mother. But none of that was a concern anymore. If he does this right, he’ll become the badass hero he never thought he could become, and live a life of comfort right afterwards.

But first things first, he needed to find a mentor.

* * *

Karma, Gakushuu, and Kayano end up finding him three.

Nagisa looks at the imposing figures in front of him. The first has a dark, regal-looking robe, with a broadsword attached to his hip. The second is a beautiful lady with a scathing glare. She has a dangerously low-cut dress and a giant tome sticking out of her bag. Nagisa notices the two have matching rings on their hands.

The third… is wearing sunglasses and a hawaiian shirt. He’s probably here for a vacation, though Kayano insists that he’ll be a great help in Nagisa’s training.

“Hello, Chosen One,” The man with the broadsword says, “I am Karasuma Tadaomi, the Head of the Royal Guard. I protect the Church and those who serve it.”

“I’m his wife, Irina Jalavic.” The lady says, “Don’t bother asking for my hand, because I’m already taken.”

Karasuma sighs, “That’s _highly unprofessional_ ” he mutters. Irina pouts in response. “Usually, she’s more competent than this, being the chief mage and all. I would ask if you could ignore her childish behaviour.”

“Now now, Karasuma, you’re being a little too harsh on your wife here!” The third man steps in. “She’ll leave you if you don’t treasure her, you know!”

“There’s a line between ‘treasuring her’ and being completely unprofessional in front of the otherworlder.” Karasuma argues, though his voice remains steady and calm.

The third man _guah_ ’s, and says, “well, can’t argue with your logic.” He pouts. “You’re just no fun.”

Karasuma sighs again. He seems to do that a lot, “This one here is the previous Chosen One. He was quite the formidable soldier at the time, and he is very excited to teach you the tactics required to defeat the Lord of the Underworld.”

“I’m Koro!” The former Chosen One says. “Though I guess it’d be Koro Yukimura now” his face flushes as he takes on a dopey expression. 

Kayano kicks him in the shin. “Stop daydreaming about my sister, and get on with the teaching already.”

“He’s your brother-in-law?” Nagisa asks, more for confirmation than anything. He had never met Kayano’s sister, so he wouldn’t know what her personality was like, but these two seemed to have a very close relationship.

“Yeah, you can barely tell he used to be the world’s savior, with how he acts though.” Kayano responds.

“Hey!” Koro says, looking a little shaky. “You don’t mean that, right? I’m still pretty cool, right?” 

“That’s enough.” Karasuma interrupts. “There’s much to be done, and not nearly enough time to do it. I don’t have the energy to waste on restraining you, Koro.”

“Huhhh, scary.” Koro says, dragging his words. He doesn’t look scared, Nagisa notices, though he supposes that any former Chosen One would have no cause to fear anything, nor anyone.

“First order of business. Nagisa, what can you do?” Irina asks. “Kayano said that you chose the sword, meaning you’ll be of a knight or fighter class. You won’t be able to learn magic, but that shouldn’t stop you from learning some of its uses. You could always enchant your weapons with it.”

“Irina is correct. I will duel you, to test out your prior knowledge in the combat arts. Then, we may proceed to the theory classes and additional training if necessary.” Karasuma says. 

“Yikes.” Karma says, looking up from his phone-orb. “I already did my time in school, thanks. I’m out.”

“Karma, did you forget about our meeting?” Gakushuu asks. “We were going to discuss the potential for merging our companies.”

“Oh, that was today? Well then, I guess we can always discuss it here while we watch Nagisa not know how to wield a sword.”

“Karma!” Kayano scolds. “That’s very rude, you know! I’ll bet there’s tons of stuff in his old world that you’d be incapable of doing too!”

Karma sticks his tongue out at her in response, and turns back to Gakushuu. “So, first we need to figure out that situation with the location…”

Nagisa turns back to his instructors, suddenly feeling like he was back in school. Karasuma takes out his broadsword from his sheath, and stands in a battle stance. Nagisa hastily grabs the sword from his own belt. _So not exactly like school._

“Ready when you are, Nagisa.” 

Karasuma was tough, especially since Nagisa has never fought anyone before. He mostly tries to copy the moves from games or shows, hoping that even if the hits don’t land, they’ll be cool enough that Nagisa won’t make a total fool out of himself.

The spar, if you could call it a spar, since Karasuma was just blocking every one of Nagisa’s attacks and not taking the initiative to counter, continues. Nagisa tries new angles, new step patterns, but they all just end up in the grating sound of metal on metal and sore muscles. 

_There has to be something that I can do._ Nagisa looks at Karasuma’s form. _There has to be an opening somewhere, a blind spot or something._ Nagisa was panting now, not used to the sudden influx of athleticism. Back in his world, the most exercising he’s ever done was walk to school or run a few laps for gym class. Never anything this intense.

“If you would like, we can ask Gakushuu and Karma to aid you in your battle. Part of being a successful Chosen One is knowing how to bring out the best in your party.” Koro suggests. “Since you don’t look used to battle, we can bring in some people who are, though they can’t help you _too_ much.”

“Hmm?” Nagisa says, trying to catch his breath. “Yeah, sure, I’d like that.” _This was just for Karasuma to gauge his abilities, right? Why is everyone here so intense?_.

“Huuh?” Karma drawls. “Gakushuu wouldn’t be able to hit a _fly_ by now, much less the Head of the Royal Guard.”

“ _I_ work with magic every day, Karma.” Gakushuu snorts. “Unlike you, who’s just hammering away at some metal.”

“I’ll have you know that ‘hammering away at some metal’ has actually made me a lot stronger. I’ll _obliterate_ Karasuma, you’ll see.”

Gakushuu rolls his eyes in response, though he has a soft smile on his face.

They walk over, and pull out their weapons. For Gakushuu, it was a tome, which he seemingly pulled out of nowhere. _Probably some magic inventory shenanigans,_ Nagisa thinks. For Karma, it was the sword strapped to his back, which Nagisa had never actually noticed since it was held in a shadowed sheath.

Karasuma quickly sets up his battle stance again, and they begin to duel.

“Nagisa,” Irina walks over to him. “You can observe them to learn how to fight for yourself.”

“Right,” Koro joins them. “It may be hard for you to follow their fast movements at first, so I’ll help you do a play-by-play.”

Nagisa nods, eyes focused on the three fighters in front of him. They were fighting seriously, he notes. Karma’s swings were nothing like Nagisa’s clumsy swipes, but instead confidant slashes that seemed to leave a trail of flame and shadow magic behind. 

Gakushuu, on the other hand, had stuck Karasuma’s feet in place with some kind of spell. Since Karasuma couldn’t move, he was forced into pure defence against Karma’s endless barrage of attacks.

“See there,” Irina points to Gakushuu. “It’s difficult to control power output with strong magic like his, so you’ll notice that he’s sticking to support spells instead of offensive ones. If he were fighting Karasuma to the death, however, it would be a much different story.”

“Right.” Koro gestures to Karma’s sword. “Notice how Karasuma’s also avoiding the sword’s afterimage? That’s because it was enchanted with long-lasting effects, so the afterimage could still cut. And Karma’s swinging that around like it’s nothing, but a sword like his must be made of heavy, dense material, or it wouldn’t be able to hold its shape.”

Karma swings once more, and Karasuma directs the hit to his feet, so the fire from Karma’s sword melts the magic that Gakushuu was using to hold Karasuma down.

“Karasuma’s playing defensive now.” Irina says. “If you see a situation that you can’t seem to get out of, you can always try deflecting until you see a potential for escape.”

“Now you should get in there!” Koro says, pushing Nagisa towards the field. “Doing is better than listening, after all. If you want _real_ battle experience, try the 3v1 against Karasuma.”

“Uh.” Honestly, Nagisa would have been content to sit down a little longer, more than a little sweaty and exhausted. But alas, this was training, and dammit, Nagisa was going to learn how to be a good enough fighter to earn his title.

So he walks over, where his new friends are chanting spells and swinging heavy swords at his teacher. Nagisa wants to try a sneak attack, knowing that this may be his only hope of landing a hit on Karasuma. 

He tries to think of hiding his presence, and hiding his intentions. He’s had enough practice, sitting through long hours of hair braiding and modelling girlish clothes. _Guess my mother was good for something, at least_. 

Nagisa holds up his sword, steadies his breathing, and walks forwards, calm and collected towards the unsuspecting Karasuma.

As soon as the blade approaches Karasuma’s neck (not that Nagisa planned on actually cutting him, but he wanted to prove that he could be a threat too), Nagisa finds himself thrown onto the ground. 

He lets out an _oof_ , and the fighting ceases.

“My apologies.” Karasuma says hastily. “I did not expect you to be able to sneak up on me like that. I may have overreacted.”

“May have? Karasuma, he’s not one of your knights that you can just throw around however you please! He’s a child, probably barely out of school!” Koro says, cradling Nagisa’s head gently, even though Nagisa had barely been hurt.

“I’m fine, don’t worry.” Nagisa says. “It was just a little throw. Kind of like Judo, though I guess you guys wouldn’t know what that is.”

Gakushuu tosses him a vial filled with a minty-pine liquid. “Here. None of us are clerics, so drink this instead. It’ll mend any torn tissue or fractured bones, but it won’t help with the pain. You can get someone to do a spell for that.”

Nagisa drinks it. He doesn’t feel any different, but his arm moves a bit more smoothly and his head doesn’t quite pound anymore, even though he was unaware that it was pounding in the first place. It tasted good, just like how it smelled.

“Thanks, Gakushuu!” Nagisa says. “I don’t have to pay you for this, right?”

Gakushuu shrugs. “I made extra by accident. Consider it a gift.”

Karma nudges Gakushuu’s shoulder. “I thought the great Gakushuu Asano didn’t make mistakes.” He grins. “Admit it, you were worried about him and brought it along.”

Gakushuu punches him in response, opting not to say anything. Nagisa does notice, and he’s sure Karma does too, that the tips of Gakushuu’s ears had gone red.

“Well, how about we stop here today?” Karasuma says. “I can only assume that you must have some kind of innate ability to conceal your presence, and I’m sure we can work with it for our own benefit.”

“We meet again here, tomorrow, same time.” Irina says, and dumps a load of bounded leather books into Nagisa’s lap. “And read these for tomorrow. It’s the general overview of the history of magic.”

Nagisa almost groans out loud. It felt just like he had homework, but at least it was for something interesting. In fact, now that he’s considering the alternative, he’s decided that he’d much rather read about cool fantasy-made-real than some old white guy starting another pointless war.

He takes the books, and almost drops them again in shock. “Wait a moment.” Everyone turns to look at him. “Where am I supposed to sleep?”

“Oh, I guess you could stay at any inn. The only valuables you’re holding is your sword, and that should appear back on you belt whenever you let go of it.” Koro explains. “Here’s some gold for dinner and a room. We can always look into more permanent housing after you’ve defeated the Dark Lord.”

“Guess it’s time for us to head home too, Koro. Aguri’s been saying something about a new ice cream shop?”

“Yeah, I guess we better go check that out,” Koro tries to sound disinterested, but he starts walking noticeably faster, forcing Kayano to practically run after him.

“Hmm. Let’s go finalize the paperwork for the business arrangement.” Gakushuu says to Karma. “My place is closer to the bar. Are you still planning on going?”

“Of course, Shuu. Wouldn’t miss it for the world.” And Karma tries to pass it off as a joke, but Nagisa could tell that Karma’s not a very good liar, and that sounded pretty genuine to him.

They part ways, and Nagisa goes to search for a reasonably-priced inn where he could study his newly acquired magic books in peace.

* * *

The next day, Nagisa walks over to Karma’s store, looking for armor. Only Karasuma and Koro accompany him today, since Irina apparently has better things to do.

“Hey.” Karma leans over the countertop. “Have you picked out anything yet?”

Nagisa had not, in fact, because he doesn’t see the difference in the armor functions. In terms of appearance, they were all very unique, but he doesn’t quite know how the stat boosts work.

“Nagisa, I’d advise you to select armor that’s more advantageous for your stealth skill.” Karasuma says. “We don’t know how much time we have before the Dark Lord strikes, so we shouldn’t waste any time training you as though you were a regular knight.”

“In that case, what about this one?” Koro points to a cape. “This allows you to blend in with any shadows in the area, to a certain extent.”

“Shuu enchanted that one himself, so don’t worry about its effectiveness.” Karma says.

“Oh yeah, I heard you two talking yesterday about a business deal? What’s that about?” Nagisa asks.

Karma grins, “we’re planning on merging our companies and getting a complete monopoly on the market. Any adventurers will only be able to buy from us, and we’ll get super rich.”

“Huh.” Nagisa says, thinking it would be something like that.

He turns back to the armor, trying on the cape. It fit a bit loose, but he’s sure that he can get Irina or Gakushuu to magically adjust the sizing. 

“Hey!” Koro exclaims. “He really turned invisible!”

“He’s not invisible, just camouflage.” Karasuma corrects. “As soon as he moves, he should be noticeable again.”

“Like this?” Nagisa waves his arm.

“Yeah, we can see you.” Karma says. “But you should pick out some defensive stuff too, or you’ll die on the first hit.”

_Yikes_ “Alright. What do you recommend?” Nagisa asks, putting the cape on the counter. 

“Hmm. Get this helmet.” Karma gestures to one of the higher shelves.

Koro reads the description. “Ooh! This one’s handy! It comes with magic-repelling wards, so you won’t need to worry about any mind control or cheap tricks. After all, you never know what this Dark Lord can do.”

“Uhh, is it heavy?” Nagisa already has enough trouble lifting his sword, much less trying to carry several pounds of enchanted metal. The helmet looked pretty dense.

“Nah, you’ll be fine.” Karma says, waving his hand dismissively.

“It would do well to assist in strengthening your core, as you will need a steady center of gravity in order to support the weight.” Karasuma adds. “Actually, that’s a decent idea. Koro, you should look for the heaviest armors in the shop.”

“Sure thing!” Koro immediately begins looking for the densest metals and the highest prices. “Err… Nagisa, you’re paying for this, correct?”

“With what money? You’re the former Chosen One, you should be drowning in cash by now.” Nagisa says. He’d used up most of his money on gathering non-perishable foods, in case of an emergency, and booking his room at the inn for the next month, since he doesn’t know how long this adventure might take. 

“Yeah, he’s just stingy. Probably needs the cash to buy his porn mags.” Karma says snidely. 

Koro turns a dark, embarrassed, red. “I have a wife!”

“And? Has that changed you from the pervy teacher that you were in school?” Karma smirks. “And speaking of, that old closet, do you still keep--”

Koro makes an incoherent noise to interrupt Karma, “Karma! I’ve only known Nagisa for a day, and you shouldn’t try to soil my image with your… with your lies!” He huffs.

Karma shrugs, “mmhm, sure. It’s a bit too late already though, since we’ve already told him all about our school days.”

Koro makes a sound of complaint, before Karasuma coughs to regain his attention.

“Sorry to interrupt your petty argument, but we do have business to attend to.” Karasuma walks over to the counter with an armful of shining metal. “Here are the items we are purchasing. Don’t worry about bothering Gakushuu with resizing them, I’ll ask Irina instead.”

Karasuma makes a gesture to Koro, and Koro reluctantly hands him a bag, presumably filled with gold.

“Cool.” Karma scans them with a light, and tells Karasuma the amount, and Karasuma hands over the bag. Karma then scans the gold with the light, and nods.

“Well, have fun.” Karma says. “And if you need me or Shuu, we’re headed over to Spider Cafe to discuss business plans.”

“Bye, Karma!” Nagisa waves, following Karasuma and Koro out the door, presumably walking to see Irina.

He had read all of the books that Irina gave him yesterday, and even though he (sadly) cannot do magic, he doesn’t find it any less interesting. When they get the chance to stop by Gakushuu’s store, Nagisa really wants to get a flight potion, and maybe a strength booster. The effects may be temporary, and potentially addictive if he’s not careful, but he still wants to experience this fantasy world to the best of his ability.

They pass by Kayano, who was shopping for groceries, and she tells them that she’ll meet them at their destination.

“I’ll just drop these off at home first!” Kayano waves. “By the way, Koro. Do you have an extra few coins for me?”

Koro sighs, and hands over a few coins from his pockets. “It’s a conspiracy to keep me broke, I swear…”

“Oh, shut up, bro.” Kayano punches him in the shoulder. “It’s to feed your family, and is therefore a better cause than those magazines you always try to hide from my sister.”

Koro grumbles some more, and the group continues on their way. 

When they arrive at Irina’s--and, Nagisa presumes, also Karasuma’s--house, he takes a second to stare in awe at the size of it.

“You didn’t tell me you lived in a mansion!” Nagisa says. “I pegged you as the type to want a more… I don’t know… humble residence.”

Karasuma snorts. “I do. Want a small home, that is, but Irina doesn’t feel the same. I figure she’ll just get annoying if she’s forced to live in a place that’s not to her liking, so I’ve learned to tolerate living in a mansion.”

“You should consider yourself lucky, Karasuma. The High Priest totally hates me, so he refuses to process any of my requests to get a bigger house.” Koro says, looking dejected. “I think I’ll have to start trying to get Gakushuu to convince his dad _for me_.”

“Good luck with that. He doesn’t seem like it, but that kid’s a nightmare.” Karasuma sighs as he knocks on the door. “Irina! We have guests, so please make sure you’re decent.”

“Oh, come on!” Irina’s voice passes, slightly muffled, through the door. “They all know what tits looks like, and it’s more comfortable in the summer to not have too many layers.”

“Irina.” Karasuma says, his voice warning.

“I’m just messing with you, Kar.” Irina opens the door, fully clothed. “Seriously, you’d think he knows when his wife is joking after 5 years of marriage.” She smiles at Nagisa, as though they were sharing a joke.

Nagisa hesitantly smiles back, still admittedly a bit intimidated by her, though much more comfortable now since he’s seen the less-stern side of her. “How are you?” He asks.

“I’m just fine, thanks.” Irina gestures to let them inside. “So what did you need? I heard you were just getting supplies today, so I didn’t bother coming.”

“Yeah, he just needs the sizing re-adjusted.” Koro says.

“Easy!” Irina pulls out her staff. “So where’s the stuff?”

Karasuma pulls out a linen bag with the purchased goods, and they begin to discuss their plans to train Nagisa while Irina works with the armor, careful to not disturb the magic on them.

“Wait,” Nagisa says. “If you guys are like, really good fighters, why can’t you just join my party and help?”

“Sorry, Nagisa.” Koro says. “Unfortunately, the Goddess only blesses a single Chosen One of humble origin whenever the need for one arises. Nobody with any high status in the Royal Court, which we all have, are allowed to grant you assistance.”

“If we do, we risk all of the Goddess’ gifts becoming void.” Karasuma says. “It is not advised to displease the Goddess.”

“Alright.” Nagisa nods. “But then people like Karma or Gakushuu or Kayano would be alright?”

“Probably not Kayano,” Irina says, while measuring out Nagisa’s torso. “Since she took the role of being a messenger of the Goddess and all that. But I doubt you’ll have any trouble finding two more people, not counting Karma and Gakushuu, to form a full party.”

“Nice.” Nagisa says. “But Kayano can still come along?”

“Obviously,” Koro says. “I wouldn’t let you leave out my dear little sister.”

“Ugh, loser.” Kayano, says through the door. “I heard that, and you’re lame.” Though when Karasuma opened the door to let her in, there was a big smile on her face.

“Alright Nagisa, I’ve come to bring you to the forest, where you should be able to encounter some lower-level monsters, and start levelling up!”

_So this place really does function like a game._ “Alright. Should I bring anyone with me?”

“Don’t worry about it. Experience some battles for yourself first, and Kayano will report back to us.” Irina says. “Here’s your armor. Put it on before you leave.”

“Thanks” Nagisa takes the pile from Irina’s arms.

“And I stopped by Gakushuu’s too, so there’s plenty of health potions in case you somehow get hurt.” Kayano says, gesturing to her bag.

“So I guess I’ll head out then?” Nagisa says. “If I have any questions, should I just stop by here?”

“Yes, though you should also have our contacts in your Comm-Orb.” Karasuma says. “Just in case.”

“Oh.” Nagisa pulls out his own phone-orb/Comm-orb. Kayano had given it to him as a welcome present after she noticed Nagisa staring at Karma’s during lunch. But he still doesn’t know how to work it. “What do I press?”

“Here.” Koro swipes at the orb, and a screen pops up in front of the orb. “You can change the settings so that only you can see and touch the screen projection, but that’s all you need to do! Did they not have Comm-Orbs in your world?”

“Err… We had something a little different, though I guess they basically function the same way.” Nagisa stares as each of his mentors enter their contact information into his orb. “I guess I should be on my way now.”

“Yup!” Kayano says. “Let’s go start you first adventure, Nagisa!”

“Hopefully,” Nagisa begins, “it’ll be the first of many more to come.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! There was my not-so-brief introduction to this small multi-part fic that I'm doing! Let me know how you like the setup, even though nothing of consequence has happened so far...


	2. New (-ish) Emotions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wahhhh sorry this took so long to write? I just, had a lot of trouble with Karma's characterization here, because I don't want him to be un-karma-like, but also he needs to be a sap. I tried my best to find a compromise.

Gakushuu performs at the local bar on main street every month, and Karma has yet to miss a single song.

He hated to admit it, but seeing Gakushuu in the spotlight, coaxing out a tune from whatever new instrument he’s picked up, has always been Karma’s favourite experience.

Actually, that was a lie. Karma’s favourite feeling is the adrenaline of a fight, which Gakushuu could give him in droves. He was possibly the toughest mage Karma’s ever fought, and Gakushuu would never let him forget it.

Indeed, seeing Gakushuu perform was only exhilarating in the way that Karma knows the real Gakushuu Asano. His calm and gentle manner on stage was only captivating because Karma knows the strength that lies underneath. And not only that, but Gakushuu _never_ let down his guard, and this is the only time when Karma can see his long-time friend relax.

Karma hated listening to music, but these performances were always over too soon. 

“Woah, Karma!” Nagisa spoke from the seat next to Karma’s. “I can’t believe Gakushuu can sing like that!”

Karma turns to his friend, “Sure. I thought we told you how he performs here every month.”

“ _Whaaat?_ ” Nagisa thinks for a second. “Does that mean I arrived exactly a month ago?”

“Probably.” Karma shrugs. “I don’t know how you keep time back in your world, but I can give you a calendar someday.”

Karma was, admittedly, a little distracted. Gakushuu was giving the crowd a smile that he only shows when he’s performing, genuine and full of joy.

Nagisa frowns, “I can’t read your language. Kayano says that the translation spell only works on speech.”

“Huh. Didn’t anyone teach you?” Karma orders a drink. Vodka for himself, and a grape juice for Nagisa, since he was practically a baby. “If not, I’m sure that Gakushuu would be more than willing. You know that he taught himself to write without looking at the page?”

“Why would he learn that? When would he use that skill?”

“It’s mostly so he can stir a potion while writing up the procedure. He’s taught himself to be ambidextrous too, you know?”

“Ah well, yeah, Gakushuu’s pretty cool, and I’m sure he’d make a great teacher. But I don’t know… he seems pretty busy all the time.” Nagisa says. “And besides, don’t you and him have that company merger thing to work out?”

Karma smiles, “everything just got worked out today. We’re partially here to celebrate.” He raises his cup for emphasis.

“Woah, that’s great, Karma! You guys work super hard and I’m glad that everything worked out!”

Karma nods as thanks. “How’s training?” and it’s a little rude of him, sure, but Karma doesn’t fully pay attention to Nagisa’s response. Gakushuu was walking over to their table now, all smiles and radiant, and Karma wanted to congratulate him on the successful performance.

He doesn’t, since he’s Karma and not a love-sick puppy, so he orders Gakushuu a martini instead. In return, Gakushuu doesn’t bother with needless pleasantries like ‘what did you think’, or ‘did I sound alright’ because he damn well knows that he did just fine.

It was a comfortable silence, and they had settled into an easy, familiar routine these past few years.

As Nagisa starts raving about Gakushuu’s performance, Karma quietly sips his drink. Gakushuu thanks Nagisa politely for the compliments, but Karma can see him nearly explode with the desire to point out the flaws in his seemingly perfect act.

He’d been a perfectionist since the day he came out of the womb, really. It was probably his DNA, Karma thinks. With a father like that, there was no way Gakushuu would turn out anything other than high-strung and overly meticulous. 

Karma allows himself this rare occasion to just stare, since Nagisa’s enthusiastic barrage of compliments doesn’t seem to be letting up anytime soon, and Gakushuu was too distracted with forcing himself to accept the kind words instead of talking about how he could have been better.

Gakushuu’s hair is slightly mussed, which was a very rare occurrence. And Karma knows how much Gakushuu cares about his appearance, since he feels like he needs to look the part of ‘the High Priest’s son’, even though nobody else cared. He once saw him on a class outing desperately combing his hair before everyone else could wake up. It works, obviously, because his hair is healthy and nice and smooth, framing his face to really— _ugh. Guess I’m more drunk than I thought,_ he thinks, ignoring how he’s barely touched his alcohol. 

Karma frowns down at his cup, because he doesn’t _try_ to creepily stare at his friend at every opportunity, he just doesn’t deny the fact that Gakushuu is _objectively_ good looking. It doesn’t mean anything at all, really. Karma takes a large gulp of his drink.

 _His eyes. It’s his eyes._ They were just so _bright_. They’re the eyes of someone who knows what they want and how they’ll get it. _Grossly unfair,_ but Karma doesn’t hold a grudge. 

It was an exaggeration to say that Gakushuu changed his life, since he didn’t _really_ , but it was because of him that Karma decided to put his naturally apt skills to good use, and-

Those eyes turn to meet his. “God, Karma. Don’t tell me you’re so sloshed already that you’ve stopped registering your own name.”

Karma blinks, processing what he means. _Someone probably called for me. Was I really that out of it?_ Karma quickly collects himself, “oops, my bad. I was just thinking about how shit this drink is. Probably a fresh hire.” Not technically a lie, since the bartender didn’t even bother making his vodka cold.

“What’s wrong with it?” Nagisa says, very obviously hinting that he wants to try some.

“Apparently, ‘on the rocks’ means nothing to these people.” Karma frowns. “I hate asking favours from you, but my celebratory drink should _not_ be room temperature.”

Gakushuu rolls his eyes and shoots a beam of magic towards Karma’s cup. It instantly chills. “Don’t know how you drink the stuff, vodka’s meant to be carbonated, or done as shots.”

Karma smiles, teasing. “But this is more swanky. Or are you so out of touch with youth nowadays that you don’t even know what drinks are trending?”

Nagisa takes a sip of his grape juice, glaring at his cup. He looks at the bartender, as though assessing whether he’d be willing to give alcohol to a minor.

“First, I know you said it as a joke, but never say ‘swanky’ ever again or I’ll fucking poison you.” Gakushuu scowls. “And I’m not that much older than you, so you don’t get to make Old Man jokes about me.”

“Damn, Gakushuu. I think they added too much salt on the rim, since that’s all I can hear in your voice.” Karma grins. “And also, yes, you are indeed old, since you’re only a few days off from being a full year older than me.”

“Maybe that just means you’re a baby.” Gakushuu retorts.

“Hey!” Nagisa shouts. “If Karma’s a baby, then what does that make _me_?” 

“A fetus,” Gakushuu replies. 

“Nah, he’s more like an egg, with that haircut.” Karma says. “I know you got it cut off in a hurry, but did you even consider styling it?”

Nagisa brushes his hand through his hair, and sighs. “You’re right, I was so desperate to get it all chopped off that I didn’t even think about how it’d look afterwards.”

Gakushuu assesses it. “I mean, it’s not… terrible? But I bet Kayano would know how to make it look nice even while it’s short. She’s good at that kind of thing.”

Nagisa makes a note of that on his Comm-Orb. Karma notes that he’s adjusted really well to the technology of their world, even though it’s only been a month. He also wonders, in a quieter part of his mind, whether Gakushuu knew to seek out Kayano for hair tips because of experience.

“Ah, but we’re not here today to discuss my hair,” Nagisa says, smiling. “I just heard that all the merger details fell into place well!”

Gakushuu smiles. “Yeah, we were planning on celebrating a bit tonight. If you don’t have training tomorrow, you should join us.” 

Karma almost breathes a sigh of relief. Alcohol, Karma’s uncharacteristically affectionate thoughts, and Gakushuu would not mix well, in his opinion. But if Nagisa was here, then at least he could act as a buffer to prevent Karma from saying something he’d regret. _And with Gakushuu’s stupidly good memory, he’d definitely remember that even while a little tipsy._

And from what he knows, Nagisa does self-study on weekends, so he had no reason to refuse. Karma should make the boy a nice sword accessory or something as thanks.

“Sorry guys, I have an impromptu lesson planned with Karasuma. He has one of his rare days off, and he wants to work on my sword-wielding technique.” Nagisa smiles sheepishly, as though he hasn’t singlehandedly caused future-Karma to mess up and make a whole-ass fool of himself.

“You should get some rest then.” Gakushuu says, unaware of Karma’s internal crisis. “Karasuma’s training sessions are hell. If you don’t get enough sleep, you’ll probably collapse.” He scowls, remembering their days in school.

Nagisa snorts, “don’t I know it. Maybe you brew me up a muscle-strengthening potion?”

“You always ask.” Karma teases, pointedly not looking at Gakushuu. If anyone was able to tell when Karma was nervous, it would be him. “I’m pretty sure his answer won’t change just because you asked one more time.”

Nagisa sighs, and picks up his bag. “I _know_ , I’ll end up crashing afterwards and everything’ll be harder, but I doubt it’s that bad.”

“Trust me. It’s that bad.” Karma grimaces. “I was the test subject while Gakushuu was experimenting with the recipe. There’s no way to avoid the side-effects.”

Nagisa sighs again, “Alright. Well, I’ll see you guys later? I can probably stop by afterwards if you wanna do lunch, and if you two aren’t too hungover.” He smiles. “And if I’m still alive by then.”

“Don’t worry, Karma never knows when to stop drinking, so I can guarantee that he’ll be hungover tomorrow.” Gakushuu says.

“Uh, says the one drinking _martinis_ during a celebration.” Karma says. “You’re not good at holding your liquor to begin with, why did you pick a strong drink?”

Nagisa laughs, “So what I’m getting is, you’re _both_ going to be out of commission for the morning and possibly early afternoon. Got it.”

They wave goodbye, and Karma turns back to look at Gakushuu and his dumb pretty eyes and stupid smooth hair.

Yeah, Karma reasons that he was just being stupid earlier, because they’ve been friends for years, a little bit of staring or loose words wouldn’t sabotage that. If he can comfortably banter with Gakushuu, then there was no cause for concern.

And if he says something that’s just a little too sappy, or if his arms always seem to find a place around Gakushuu’s shoulders, well, he could always blame the alcohol.

* * *

The funny thing about alcohol was that it tended to be the main culprit for splitting headaches and nausea the next morning. 

Karma swallows a few times, trying to get his voice to work. It takes him a minute before he lets out a “Fuck. Nagisa was right.”

“Shut up. I don’t want to hear your voice.” Gakushuu’s voice calls back from across the room. Usually, whenever they got drunk, and it happened a lot more often then they would care to admit, they would travel back to one of their respective apartments. 

Karma notices that today it was Gakushuu’s, so Karma was the one who slept on the couch. 

“I feel like that might have been a blackout drunk day,” Karma looks at his hands. “I don't see any blood, so maybe…? We don't need to plead our innocence to your dad this time?”

“Ugh. I have a memory-restoration potion somewhere, but I don’t think I’m feeling well enough to drink it.” Gakushuu replies.

“How’s the progress on your hangover cure?”

“Still testing. Not nearly functional enough yet.” Gakushuu sighs, then winces at the movement.

“I’ll make us some Wake-Up.” Karma gets up after a moment. “Did you run out of Acetia Beans?”

“No. Ran out of space.” Gakushuu groans, also getting up. “I think they’re in the storage closet. I’ll bring it over.”

“I—ow, shit.” Now that the nausea has mildly subsided, he could feel an acute pain on his earlobe. “Did I get my ear pierced last night?”

Gakushuu stares at him for a minute, shocked into silence. “I’ll make that memory potion. Here’s the beans.”

Karma works on their Wake-Up Brew, making the executive decision to not put hot-salamander peppers into Gakushuu’s cup, since the poor guy was already suffering enough and Karma’s not _that_ mean. Gakushuu, at the other kitchen, creates a bubbling light blue liquid that he then pours into a mug. 

“I’m probably going to throw up, honestly.” Gakushuu says. “Though I guess the sensation’s already there.”

“Just drink the thing already so we know if we need to run from the Court.” Karma chugs his brew. 

Gakushuu drinks it. “Well, I’ve got good news and bad news.”

“Start with the good.”

“Good news is, nothing that would get us landed in jail.”

“But?”

“Bad news, it’s best not to visit my father for a while.”

“Huh.” Karma thinks about it. Gakuhou had always had enough patience with them that he probably wouldn’t care too much, regardless of what they did. He hands Gakushuu his mug. “What did we do?”

“Nothing, really. You just convinced me to create a dark zone around his house.” Gakushuu says, sipping from his cup. “And I did the magical formulas while drunk—they were complicated enough that I can’t even recall the details—so who knows what’s going to happen with that?”

“Eh. He won’t care. He can whisk that away with no effort at all. Maybe. If it didn’t have any time-altering or power-enhancing properties.”

Karma looks hopefully at Gakushuu, then rubs his forehead from the sudden movement. The pained grimace that Gakushuu gives in return is answer enough.

“Based on the general formulas I threw in there… There is a shielding property, so nobody can enter or leave the zone. And maybe it had a side effect of deep slumber. So there is no light going into his house. I don’t know how I casted it so there’s no way to reverse it, and he’s going to be asleep for a _while_.” Gakushuu gives him a slightly panicked look. “No light for a week, at the soonest.”

“Oh shit. His plants?”

“His plants.”

“He can’t use some good ol’ necromancy to revive them?”

“Remember? He’s not allowed to do that anymore since he started serving as the High Priest.”

“Can you?”

“No, that’s illegal.”

“Well. Hopefully he’s scared his plants enough that they’ll even grow in pitch darkness.” Karma notes. “At least it wasn’t anything wasabi related this time.”

“God, I can still smell the prank from last time.” Gakushuu frowns. “We’re never going drinking ever again.”

“Agreed.” Karma says, as though the two of them haven’t been saying the exact same thing every previous time.

“And uh. Hey. At least your earring’s nice. The gold stud matches your eyes.” Gakushuu says after a quiet moment of trying to massage headaches away. 

“Why did I…?” Karma asks. Jewelry wasn’t his thing, because he didn’t need it. He just needed proper armor and a strong sword in order to fight, unlike Gakushuu. Ever since school, Gakushuu wore his full set of magic-storing accessories so that he could shoot out one high-intensity spell after another without passing out. He doesn’t wear as many outside of battle, but there are occasional earrings so that his piercings wouldn’t close up. 

“I think it was because you wanted to match.” Gakushuu says. “Though I don’t think you need any amulets.”

“Well, at least I look good. And at least we didn’t get tattoos.” Karma says.

“About that…” Gakushuu starts, turning his head to hide his face, “you might want to check that right shoulder of yours.”

“What-” Karma was _not_ going to see a stupid tattoo permanantly etched into his skin, he _was not going to—_ “You fucking bitch.” Karma stares at his bare shoulder.

Gakushuu bursts into laughter, then grimaces in pain. “Sorry, couldn’t resist.”

“I was even nice and didn’t put anything into your Wake-Up Brew. _Or_ draw on your face while you were asleep.” Karma whines.

“Well,” Gakushuu moves his arms very slightly, in what’s probably supposed to be a shrug. “That’s too bad for you, then.”

“Ugh. Whatever. What time is it?” Karma asks.

“Just past 12.” Gakushuu answers. His stomach growls. “Should we go get something to eat?”

“I thought you said you felt like throwing up?”

“Yes, but also, I haven’t eaten since before the show last night. I’m starving.” Gakushuu says, picking up his stuff. “You should call Kayano and Nagisa, so that we’re not alone when my dad decides he wants us killed.”

“He wouldn’t do that,” Karma says. “At most, it’d just be a little bit of torture.”

* * *

“Holy shit,” Karma says. “This poutine is the best thing I’ve ever eaten.”

“You don’t like cheese,” Gakushuu says, sipping his water.

“Not-hungover Karma doesn’t like cheese,” Karma retorts. “This Karma does.”

Nagisa and Kayano bite back a smile. They exchange glances, having a wordless conversation with nudges and _'no you ask him'_ and _'but you were the one who brought it up'_. Finally, after a particularly hard kick to the shin, Nagisa gives in.

“Hey Gakushuu, why don’t you have a cure for this stuff?” Nagisa asks. “It seems like you two go and get drunk every week or so. By now, wouldn’t it be more convenient to have a hangover cure potion?” 

Gakushuu sighs, as though he’s had this conversation many times. “Well, there’s a few things that potions won’t do. Hangovers are essentially alcohol withdrawl, so it isn’t a physical ailment that potions can cure.”

Nagisa winces, remembering that the ‘cure’ for physical ailments is for the potion to forcibly set the body straight again. The pain of having his leg reset from some past training sessions was not something he enjoys remembering.

“And any solution with altering the mind can only work temporarily, with many unwanted side effects.” Gakushuu continues. “The brain is much too complicated to change without damaging other parts, so potion makers and magic scholars try not to mess with it too much.”

Karma scowls, since he’s had many arguments with Gakushuu over how studying the mind is actually probably quintessential to the development of society, so they should experiment where the Royal Court won’t. Unfortunately, Gakushuu seems intent on ‘not doing illegal things’ and how ‘it will be bad for the business if it gets uncovered’ and so on, so they never ended up doing it.

“Right,” Kayano agrees. “If things in the mind could be fixed so easily, then there’d be no such thing as addiction or mental illness.”

“Hmm.” Nagisa nods. After all the differences in worlds, these people were still the same humans as he, and therefore capable of feeling the same weaknesses. “Well, to be honest, I didn’t expect this conversation to go this direction, but I guess I should have seen it coming?”

“Shuu’s pretty predictable. You definitely saw it coming.” Karma jokes. “He’s been like this since we met. If you give him the chance to show off knowledge, he’ll give you a 2-hour lecture on whatever you asked and more.”

Gakushuu glares at him. “That’s an extreme exaggeration.”

“Uh?” Kayano interrupts. “I really hope you didn’t forget that time I asked whether a tomato was a fruit or not? It was a yes-or-no answer, but instead I got a 1-hour lecture on ‘the failings of the edible fauna classification system.’”

“Oh I remember that one!” Karma says. “You should be glad you weren’t there, Nagisa, he went _on_ and _on_ about seeds and plant ovaries and—ugh. I don’t even want to think about it anymore.”

“It was more than that.” Gakushuu rolls his eyes. “The way that scientists like to categorize legumes and…” Karma zones out. 

In truth, that first lecture from years ago had inconvenient timing. It was right after a duel (and Karma could admit that he lost, whatever, no big deal, he wasn’t angry at all) and Karma was a little more worked up than usual. It was not a good time for Gakushuu to start talking with his shiny jewelry that won him the duel in that arrogant tone that could only come from a winner. 

Honestly, Karma loved hearing Gakushuu talk, though he would never admit so out loud. He loved it more so when they’ve just dueled. He spoke with the confidence of someone who had never questioned himself in his entire life, and Karma could respect that. Karma could fake his confidence all he wanted, but his act will always pale in comparison to the real thing. And it's not that he's _unconfident_ , per say, but he can admit that their strengths lie in different places. And if his voice distracts Karma a bit (a lot), making him a little dazed whenever Gakushuu opens his mouth (which is very common), then at least it would never be noticeable to the general public, or at least not to the other teens while they were in school. 

Obviously, Karma was young and impressionable back then, hence why his own self-esteem had been so easily crushed by a stray comment from a random teacher. But he’s grown, and he doesn’t get distracted by Gakushuu’s voice anymore. Definitely. And he barely wears jewels anymore, so there’s nothing shiny to pull Karma’s attention and it’s much easier to turn away.

“Do I have something on my face?” Gakushuu asks, stopping his impromptu lecture.

Karma blinks, “No. Why?” Karma asks.

“Oh. No reason.” Gakushuu replies.

Kayano’s kick to Nagisa’s shin was audible this time, and everyone stops talking for a few minutes, the only sound being the squelching of cheese or the slurping of pudding.

“Oh yeah, you guys!” Nagisa says, interrupting the awkward silence. “Karasuma says that my swordplay skills are good enough now that I can go on actual adventures without worrying about getting killed!”

The other three congratulate him.

“Does this mean you’ll form a party soon?” Kayano asks. “It’s necessary if you want to eventually defeat the Big Bad.”

“Well…” Nagisa had been putting it off, since he hadn’t had the time. “I was kind of hoping that you guys would join.”

“I can’t.” Kayano says. “It’s like your teachers said. I think the Goddess wouldn’t approve of me fighting alongside you, since I serve her foremost.”

“But you’ll still come with us, right?” Nagisa asks.

“Obviously. What else is a ‘helper fairy’ supposed to do other than help and be a fairy?” Kayano answers.

“I would love to. How many days is it gonna take you to kill the man?” Karma says.

“Um… I was thinking more along the time of a few years?” Nagisa says. 

“Well, alright.” Gakushuu says. “After we get our merged business started and stabilized, we’ll have time to come along with you.”

Nagisa nods and smiles. “Alright.”

“Regardless, they’re on a totally different level than you,” Kayano points out. “If you’re at a 5, then they’re at 50, maybe even 100. While they do their business stuff, it’s probably best if you get to somewhere around where they’re at.”

“Well, that sounds reasonable,” Karma says. “And, you’ll be getting free armour and potions from us.”

“Woah, who said they would be free?” Gakushuu cuts in. 

“His future paycheck and the fact that we would have helped guide him on defeating the Big Bad?”

“Fair.” Gakushuu shrugs. 

“We’ll do lunch every week, so that we can catch each other up on things.” Kayano suggests.

“Sounds good to me!” Nagisa says. “Though I’ve only been to one restaurant here, so you guys should find me some other places too!” 

Gakushuu and Karma nod their agreements, and they continue on their separate journeys. For Karma and Gakushuu, it was ensuring that their new business would thrive for a long time. For Nagisa, it was to gain a bit more experience in battle so that he could eventually save this new world.

* * *

“Nagisa!” Kayano shouts, “what did you just do?”

“I didn’t mean to!” Nagisa responds, looking down at the bird he just slaughtered. “I don’t think arrows are a good weapon for me.”

“Obviously,” Kayano says. “At least you also got the monster, or we’d be totally dead.”

“But Karma says that it’s not good to rely too much on one weapon, and I think he’s pretty trustworthy about things like that.” Nagisa says. “And there’s not enough time for me to build up enough muscle definition to plausibly use any martial arts or combat skills.”

“Well, obviously.” Kayano says. “Honestly, I think that you would have been better suited to a mage class, though I guess you’d then have to memorize those long strings of chants and magic formulas.”

“My memory’s alright. It’s not _bad_ , at least.”

Kayano shrugs. “Well, no changing things now. The Goddess has granted you your desired path on this journey, and now you have to follow it.”

“But you can agree at least that my sword skills are coming along?”

“Well, I’m not the expert, Karasuma is. And I trust him at the very least.” Kayano changes back to human form, and sits down at a nearby boulder. “When will you be done with your hunting?”

“When these monsters stop spawning.” Nagisa catches sight of another monster appearing. 

According to his teachers (and his friends), the Big Bad always starts transforming animals into his minion monsters. They have no consciousness, and no individual thoughts. Just a never-ending hunger for flesh and the desire to serve their king. Koro says that they’re likely tools that the Dark Lord uses to summon himself to places outside of his castle for a short amount of time.

If people who could fight allowed the monsters to overwhelm villages, then there was a high chance that the Dark Lord would summon himself there and conquer it. 

The further the area was from the castle, the weaker the monsters tended to be, so Kayano took Nagisa to the outskirts of the continent to start his training session.

“I still don’t see why we need to be here.” Kayano continues. “These monsters are so docile they’re practically still regular animals.”

“Ugh, you’re right. I feel like a schoolyard bully cornering the quiet kid in the class to ask for lunch money, and then asking him out on a date because he thinks he’s a girl.”

“That’s… oddly specific.” Kayano frowns. “Is there something you’d like to share, Nagisa?”

Nagisa turns away, breaking eye contact. “Sorry, I guess my old world’s just been on my mind lately.”

“Your mom?”

“Not just her. I realized recently that I had _no one_ in my old world. My dad decided to pull a hell of a disappearing act, and my ‘friends’ at school weren’t the hottest shit either.”

Kayano’s frown deepens. She rarely hears Nagisa swear, especially when talking about other people. She puts an arm around his shoulder. 

“Hey, I’m here for you. And I know that won’t automatically erase any negative emotions you have, but I want you to know that you matter a lot to me. Not just because you’re going to save the world, but also because you’re just a cool person.”

“Thanks Kayano.” Nagisa sheaths his sword. “I just… I didn’t even realize what I was missing until I got friends like you, Karma, and Gakushuu. I had always thought that my life was enough, and that it was as good as it gets.”

He tugs at his hair, loving how it doesn’t get tangled around his fingers anymore. “It feels like a dream, and I’m scared that I’ll wake up.”

“Hey.” Kayano says. “Hey, hey, hey.”

“What?”

“ _I’m_ the one who summoned you here, silly!” Kayano pats his back. “If you ever get pulled back to your own world, I’d bring you back in an instant! Don’t think it’s really that easy to get rid of us.” She sticks out her tongue.

“Well, I mean—”

“What? Maybe you doubt my magic, but I sure as hell don’t. And I sure as hell don’t doubt your sword skills. You’ve grown more in a month than most people do in a year, Nagisa! That’s something impressive, and something that won’t go away if you end up with those people in your old life.”

Nagisa stares dumbly, “but I wouldn’t have this legendary sword.”

“You don’t need a legendary sword to challenge someone to a duel.” Kayano smiles. “If you know what a sword is, that means you have those in your world, right? Just go up to your mom or whatever, and challenge her to a fight. Winning conditions be that she lets you dress however the fuck you want.”

“Well, the thought is amusing, but we don’t really just challenge people to duels in my world.”

“Why’s that?”

 _Because we’ve moved on from the 19th century._ “Mostly because people started using it as an excuse to murder people, if I remember correctly.” Nagisa responds.

“Huh. That seems like something Karma would do, if he could, that is.”

“Exactly. You don’t have any legal things against people dying?”

“Well, they don’t so much _die_ , really.” Kayano pauses, thinking about how she should explain this to an otherworlder. “We have clerics at duels—official duels, anyways—and they can always save someone from fatal injuries. Death just isn’t an impending danger, unless it’s the Dark Lord attacking us, obviously.”

“Sure, but you’re still hurting someone really badly, aren’t you?”

“Not really? I mean, duels can only legally take place if both parties agree. And they usually wager their pride moreso than their lives. Unless you’re Karma and Gakushuu, which then you’ll duel to resolve any petty argument.” Kayano rolls her eyes. “But anyways, if you’re wagering your pride as being the better fighter, then you pretty much _have_ to duel in public, or else there’s no point.”

“Right. Your Comm-Orbs don’t record video?”

“They do, but it doesn’t quite have the same feeling to it.” Kayano gets an idea, and pulls out her orb. “Here, this is the recording of the Catopolis Championship from last year. Karma, being the dueling superfan that he is (but don’t tell him I said that), got us tickets and brought us to see it live.”

Nagisa leans over, cheeks tickled by Kayano’s hair, and watches the video feed that’s projected in front of them.

It was _beautiful_. And not in just the obviously showy flourishes and poses that they open their duel with. ‘A customary introduction’, Karma has once explained. 

No, it was beautiful in the way that they never let a single spell land. It was beautiful in the way that powerful attacks came one after another. It was beautiful in that it was _inspirational_ , something that Nagisa made a mental note to study later so that he could try and imitate the swordsman’s moves.

It was absolutely breathtaking, and Nagisa suddenly couldn’t wait for his next swords skills training session.

“So?” Kayano says. “It wasn’t _nearly_ as good as seeing it live, trust me, but a dream couldn’t have come up with _that_ , right?”

Nagisa could only shake his head no. This, more than the potions and the haircut and the slaying of baby dragons or monster plants, was something that Nagisa would only see in a fantasy. 

This was people enjoying every moment of their lives, creating sports different from his own, and having interests that wouldn’t have even been a possibility on his Earth.

Nagisa may have been the Chosen One, but that doesn’t mean he’s a part of this world yet. He would like to be.

“Say, Kayano.” Nagisa says. “Where can I sign up for a duel?”

Kayano grins, bright and gleeful. “There’s a whole bunch of clubs, but you’re not going anywhere near them, at least not while I’ve got anything to say about it.”

Nagisa tilts his head in confusion.

“What I’m saying is, maybe level up first, so you don’t completely humiliate yourself or your teachers?”

Nagisa felt his ears go warm from embarrassment. “Oh, right. Yeah, good point.” He looks at the monster corpses, and picks up the items that fell from them. “I think we’re done with the beginner’s area at least.”

Kayano laughs, and opens a portal to their next destination.

* * *

“Hey, did you hear?” Gakushuu looks up from his Comm-Orb. “Nagisa just won his first duel.”

“Cool.” Karma responds, still trying to analyze why riding in a small carriage (really, Gakushuu could teleport and they’re rich enough to afford a bigger carriage that doesn’t force their clothes to keep brushing against each other) made Karma feel so flustered. 

Every slight bump in the road meant that their arms would bump into the other’s. Every time the horses had to stop to take a piss or eat some food, Karma would end up having the chance to look at Gakushuu in the still sunlight reflecting off of his golden hair and— ok. This was exactly the problem that Karma was trying to avoid, because it was moments like these that make Karma consider things like _romance_ and other stupid sentimental shit like that.

Gakushuu snorts, and Karma’s heart nearly stops because _holy shit did he finally figure out how to use magic to do mind-reading and—_ “Your friend wins his first duel, and all you have to say is ‘cool’?” 

Karma lets out an inaudible sigh of relief. “Well, it’s to be expected. I don’t hang around weaklings, and he’s being taught by some of the best in Catopolis. I think it would be more surprising if he _didn’t_ win, honestly.”

“Fair.” Gakushuu nods. “Though I must admit it’s surprising to me that you, Karma ‘that bitch’ Akabane, called someone other than yourself the best at something.”

“I do it all the time, I’ll have you know!” Karma grins. “Like you, for example. You’re _the best_ at being an arrogant piece of shit, and _the best_ at not knowing how much jewelry is too much jewelry, and—”

“Alright, I get the point.” Gakushuu interrupts. “I guess I walked right into that one, huh?”

“You sure did.” Karma says, taunting. “And speaking of walking, I’m pretty sure it would have been better than taking some shoddy old carriage.”

Gakushuu rolls his eyes. “If you expect me to be able to teleport two people half-way across a continent and back, then you _clearly_ don’t know how taxing magic is. That’s like asking you to carry me all the way there, with your supposedly ‘superhuman’ strength.”

“So those rings _are_ just for show?”

“Damn, now I know why I get drunk so often.” Gakushuu jokes. “No, there’s just not enough stored mana in these for transportation _and_ fighting.”

“Ugh, we should have made Kayano come with us.” Karma says. “She gets her mana reserves from the Goddess, right? Why can’t you do that and get infinite mana like her?”

“Then I wouldn’t be allowed to fight, dumbass.”

“All the better for me then. I’ll win all of our duels, even though I’m already doing that.”

Gakushuu huffs a laugh. “You definitely aren’t. If I was keeping score, and I’m _not_ , by the way, I would mention that we’re basically tied.”

“Yet I won the trophy, which is arguably the most important win.”

“Whatever, we could totally enter again for the upcoming championship and I’ll crush you.”

“Hmm, I guess there’s only one way to find out.” Karma says. In truth, coming back to win a second championship seems excessive, even for him, but if Gakushuu was so adamant about winning a match, then who was Karma to deny him his joys in life?

“No.” Gakushuu says after a moment of considering the idea. “A, we’re out of practice. B, there’s too much going on here. Hence why we’re travelling for a day. If we could buy the store location via Comm-Orb, that’d be much preferred, but unfortunately the seller of the store seems to be more old-fashioned.”

“Yeah, at least I get to spend a day in a cramped space with my dear ol’ pal, Shuu.” Karma says, and it’s supposed to be sarcastic, but it almost comes off as— _bleh_ —sincere. He must be losing his touch.

“Would you rather waste money on something more extravagant, although unnecessary?” Gakushuu responds.

“Well…?” Karma tries to gesture to the carriage, and ends up smaking gakushuu on the face. “Oops, didn’t mean to hit you, but if anything that proves my point further.”

“Whatever, we’re almost there anyways.” Gakushuu leans back, giving Karma a stupidly-good view of his throat, and _what the fuck, was this creepy? Is it weird to stare at your friend’s Adam’s apple in a small carriage really only meant for one person?_

Suddenly, Gakushuu’s Comm-Orb rings, interrupting Karma’s inner monologue. It was Nagisa.

“Oh, I forgot to congratulate him on his win. That’s my bad.” Gakushuu says as he answers the call. Suddenly, Nagisa’s face appears in the air in front of them. Karma doesn’t even have to lean in to see Gakushuu’s screen, since they were already so closely cramped together.

“Hey!” Nagisa says. “Did you guys hear about my win?”

“My Orb’s out of battery.” Karma says. “But Gakushuu got your message.”

“My apologies, Nagisa. I was about to congratulate you but then Karma here started whining about the carriage.”

Nagisa laughs, “that’s alright. You’re still on the road?”

“Yeah, it fuckin sucks. Tell us about your fight while you’re here.” Karma says.

“Well, it was against this guy named Akira Takaoka.” Nagisa starts. “I thought his name was also pretty Japanese-sounding, but apparently, it’s a common Eyarian name.”

“Akira Takaoka? Never heard of him.” Karma says.

“Wasn’t he in the Royal Guard at some point?” Gakushuu says. “Karasuma once talked about how he got himself kicked out for some reason or other.”

“Sure. Doesn’t matter too much anyways.” Karma turns back to Nagisa. “So how’d you beat his ass?”

“I tried using that skill! You know, the one where I can make myself unnoticeable?” Nagisa responds.

“Well, it’s a duel. There’s only you in the ring. How did you get his attention off—” Karma begins.

“Well, not really _entirely_ my skill.” Nagisa responds before Karma could finish. “I sort of, focused my skill on only my bloodlust, and when I hid that, he let his guard down. Then I tried a sword sequence that Karasuma taught me to quickly take down a surprised opponent.”

“Not bad,” Gakushuu says. “That’s not something just anyone could do, much less effectively. Was this your first time trying this tactic?”

“I’ve practiced a few times against Koro… with varying levels of success.” Nagisa answers.

“Well, it worked here, and that’s all that matters,” Karma says. The other two look at him, shocked that he said something encouraging, when he follows up with “so what did his face look like when you beat him?” And the regular Karma was back.

“He looked devastated!” Kayano’s voice sounds through the Orbs. “Sorry I took so long, I went to get us celebratory ice cream, and I got a bit distracted by all the flavours!”

Nagisa takes his cone, “well, I wouldn't say _devastated_.”

“Oh, he so was. It was Nagisa’s first duel, right, so this seasoned fighter gets taken down by someone who looks like him—no offence, but you’re about as intimidating as a squirrel—and then also gets defeated in one strike? Total humiliation.”

Karma nods seriously, “so the best kind of win. Good on you, Nagi.”

“Well, I hope the rest of your trip goes well, guys.” Nagisa waves. “I gotta go to another area now for training, so I’m going to get going.”

“Alright. See you later, Nagisa, Kayano.” Gakushuu allows Karma to wave a goodbye before he shuts off the Orb link.

“Well, he’s definitely having a better time than us right now.” Karma says bitterly, though without intent behind it.

“Yeah, if I were him I wouldn't have to deal with your babying the whole ride.” Gakushuu smiles and playfully punches Karma’s shoulder. Karma’s pretty sure he didn’t see Gakushuu cast a spell on his fist, but Karma could feel a lingering sensation where his knuckles made contact, and it wasn’t one of pain.

 _Damn, how do I make this ride last longer, but also end already?”_ Karma probably made a retort against Gakushuu’s last comment, but he was too dazed to remember what he said.

* * *

“Ok, hold up.” Karma holds out one hand in front of him, and the other poised at his sword sheath, in case the banker gets violent. “We have the gold. We have the credit. What is stopping you from giving us this property?”

“Shut up, Karma,” Gakushuu hisses. “If you kill him, we’re definitely not getting the land, and if you intimidate him too much, he’ll probably die of shock.”

“Then it’s his fault for being a wimp,” Karma whispers back. “I’ve got this, trust me.”

“No you don’t,” Gakushuu swats Karma’s hand away from his sword, and turns to the banker. “Listen, sir, you need our business more than we need your land, so it would be much more beneficial—”

“—for you to stop being a bitch about the situation—” Karma adds.

“—and for you to calmly agree to the new land ownership.” Gakushuu finishes, discreetly shooting a glare at Karma.

“I’m, uh, sorry, guys, but I’m not withholdin’ the land because of a grudge or nothin’,” The banker says. “But, y’see, this place is swarmin’ with monsters and crap, so I’m not earnin’ a good deal off the property right now, and you’re not gettin’ a good place for your business.”

“That’s alright. Monsters aren’t a problem for us.” Gakushuu says. “And if you offer up the land at 5 000 gold, then wouldn’t it be only fair for you to accept the offer of 5 000 gold?”

“Yeah, I don’t know what you wanted with the low-ball offer. Probably thought that no one would actually buy an outpost at the entrance to the monster’s area, but here we are!” Karma gestures to the building. “This is actually perfect for our business, so if you could kindly sign the papers?”

“Err… Well, y’see…” The banker starts, “The Dark Lord… y’know the one… he’s uh… more powerful this time around.”

“And?”

“That means the monsters are gonna be stronger too!”

“And?”

“Well—”

“Alright, Karma, I’m taking over.” Gakushuu elbows Karma in the side, because his patience is definitely not one of his values, and this conversation was testing it. “Mr. Wyles, sir. Please understand that I have no care nor reason to care for why this building is of such high importance to you.”

He approaches the banker, his necklaces and bracelets clanking as he walks. 

“I simply desire this outpost as a branch for our business, and I can pay the money up front, so you have no reason to deny signing the contract right here, right now.”

“Well— There needs to be a certified notary present!” The banker says. “Can’t do business without one, heh. Maybe come back another day?”

“I’m certified.” Gakushuu says, holding up a document. “Here’s a pen.”

The banker makes a disgruntled sound as he picks up the pen and reluctantly puts his name on the sheet. Gakushuu hands him a bag full of coins, and he makes his way back to the main village.

“That was so unfair of you!” Karma says, once the banker was out of earshot. “You told me that intimidation wasn’t going to work, and then you proceeded to glare the guy down until he signed a legally binding contract?”

Gakushuu sighs. “I meant that you, specifically, would be too much for the poor man to handle. He just lost his son, you know, to a fire that took place here. They used to run the outpost together, but now… well.”

“Oof,” Karma says. “Well then, what you said… uh, that was a little… hmm.”

“Whatever,” Gakushuu says, breaking eye contact, “It’s not that I feel no sympathy, but… anyways, it’s typically better for those in mourning to not be too close to what caused their loved one to pass. It helps with the process.”

“Sure,” Karma nods, “that makes enough sense.”

They turn to their newly acquired building. Of course, there’s a decent amount of paperwork that’s still left to be done, but their business here was done for the day.

Gakushuu casts some fast checks on the building, to ensure that the fire hadn’t damaged any of the foundations, then casts some protection spells to keep it secure while they were back in Catopolis.

Meanwhile, Karma was passing the time by killing some miscellaneous monsters that came near them, and occasionally getting distracted by the glint of Gakushuu’s jewelry.

The day was still young, and they were possibly the most relaxed they’ve been in the past few months, until Nagisa shows up.

* * *

“I am SOOOO SORRY about this!!” Nagisa bows in apology. “I didn’t realize that he’d get so upset, and Kayano wouldn’t let me fight him again!”

“It’s because he got corrupted with the Dark Lord’s influence,” Kayano says. “It would have been waaay too dangerous to fight him alone!”

“Woah, so you wanna officially become a party now?” Karma asks. “I mean, business just finished here, so I don’t see why not.”

“Where is this man now?” Gakushuu asks.

“He’s that guy Nagisa beat at the fight,” Kayano answers. “Akira… Tapioca?”

“Takaoka,” Nagisa responds. “Tapioca is a kind of pudding, at least where I come from.”

“Oh my god, ok. When this is all resolved you are going to make one for me as _soon as possible_ ,” Kayano says.

“Huh?” Nagisa is taken back with surprise. “Ok, first off, there’s some scary monster-looking dude who’s chasing after us right now, and I don’t know how good he is at teleporting. Second, I don’t know how to make tapioca pudding!”

“Are you familiar with the Japanese alphabets?” Gakushuu asks. “You said that you’re from Japan, and I have access to books that’s been accidentally teleported over. I’m sure one or another must contain the necessary recipe for your pudding.”

“Really?” Nagisa nods. “You couldn’t have thought to mention this before? The past month, I’ve been studying your books using the pictures!”

Gakushuu shrugs, “Must have slipped my mind. My bad.”

“Aww, Shuu, just admit it,” Karma pokes Gakushuu on the cheek. “You’re just too chicken to go see your dad again!”

Gakushuu glares exasperatedly, then sighs. “Don’t we have a human-monster to fight?”

“Well, technically we don’t _have_ to fight him!” Nagisa says. “I’m sure I could handle him, but also we could just run away for the rest of our lives?”

Kayano laughs. “If you agreed to group up with _these_ guys, then there’s _no way_ you’ll get them to agree to just running away.”

Nagisa sighs. “Alright. Do we want a battle plan…? Or maybe a strategy meeting? Or… hmm. I’m sure we have a lot of time before he shows up anyways. Let’s just spend it—”

“Oh, come on, Nagisa,” Karma interrupts, stretching out his shoulders. “Live a little! This’ll be your first battle against a human-monster hybrid! Doesn’t it get you all excited, knowing there’s no rules to hold you back from hitting as hard as you can?”

“Only Karma would be excited for illegal fights,” Gakushuu mutters, shaking his head. “Haven’t you had enough after beating down all the underground fighting rings?”

“Nah, I still wasn’t allowed to kill them. Law and all, right?”

“Ugh, guys, seriously.” Kayano says. “You’re scaring the poor kid.”

“I’m not scared!” Nagisa says, though his voice cracks a little. “I could beat him before, why wouldn’t I be able to do it again? I mean sure, his eyes have gone totally weird, and I’m almost entirely sure he grew fangs? And—”

“—Exactly, see? He’s scared now. And Nagisa,” Kayano begins to explain, “The Dark Lord’s influence only affects those with truly negative and hateful feelings. He must have felt those things when you humiliated him at the club, and got turned into a monster as a result. You know those animals that we saw get turned? Basically, the same thing happened to him.”

“Huh. So… he’s powered up, basically? And wait, if it’s negative and hateful feelings, then why’s Karma still ok?” Nagisa asks. 

“Hey!” Karma lightly punches Nagisa on the arm. “I’ll have you know that I’m perfectly capable of maintaining coherent thought, even when I’m angry.”

“Does that mean he’s powered up _and_ is lacking human emotion now?” Nagisa asks.

“More or less,” Gakushuu nods. “It’s a bit more complicated than that, but it’s not a bad summary.”

“Well then, come on!” Kayano says. “Now that we’ve got Karma and Gakushuu, let’s go kill this guy!”

“…you just want me to make you your pudding, don’t you?” Nagisa states.

“Well… You’re not entirely wrong.” Kayano sheepishly bites back a smile. “I’ll even help Gakushuu break into his dad’s library to do it!”

“I thought he terrifies you?” Gakushuu asks. “And besides, his house is warded against teleportation, even from those fueled by the Goddess’ powers.”

“Aww, well then, have fun asking him on your own!”

“I don’t think we want to see him right now… After killing his plants…” Karma says, though he doesn’t elaborate. “Has that spell worn off yet?”

“Preferably, though it’s only been a few days,” Gakushuu says. “How about we go kill that monster-guy now?”

Nagisa figures it best if he doesn’t question it. Gakushuu and Karma were known to let loose pretty badly when they got drunk (Karma’s new earring definitely wasn’t subtle), and he didn’t even want to _ask_ about the kinds of pranks that they do while unhinged.

“Alright, then.” Nagisa nods. “Kayano, would you please teleport us to wherever Takaoka is?”

“We don’t know where he is, but I guess that isn’t much of a problem.” Kayano says, pointing to the other end of the field. “There he is now.”

And sure enough, Takaoka stepped out from a cloud of dark-purple smoke. He’s growling, as though he’s been depleted of whatever humanity he still had. Fangs bared, and looking more like some kind of monstrous animal by the minute, he begins sprinting towards them.

“Alright everyone. Have fun!” Kayano shouts, turning into her fairy form. “I can't help in any way, so I’m going to go have lunch now. Call me if anything bad happens, though, I doubt it will.”

“Don’t jinx it, please.” Nagisa says, unsheathing his sword.

The Takaoka-animal lunges forward, and they begin to fight.

It wouldn’t have been a difficult battle had Takaoka been a normal human, but under the Dark Lord’s influence, the group finds out that monster-human hybrids can only be harmed by the Chosen One’s weapon. If it isn’t Nagisa doing the hitting, the monster bats away Gakushuu’s high-level spells and Karma’s flaming sword without breaking a sweat.

Thus, Karma and Gakushuu serve as supporting roles, with Karma cutting up the terrain (“don’t worry, Shuu can fix it later”) to Nagisa’s advantage, and Gakushuu enchanting him with boosts while casting ice and quicksand at Takaoka’s feet.

“We need a strategy!” Nagisa shouts, after missing another swing. “I’m not good enough yet to fight him on skill alone!”

“I can freeze him for a few seconds… no more than 5. A stun might work too, though either way he’d need to stay still for the spell to connect,“ Gakushuu says. “He seems to be absorbing any attacks we throw, so it’ll only work once.”

“I can cut a pretty deep hole for him to fall into, so maybe add an extra 5 to that?” Karma says, beginning to trace a path around the monster, slicing the ground like a hot knife through butter as he goes.

“What’s the plan though?” Nagisa says. “Even with ten seconds, that’s not enough time for me to kill him!”

And _woah_ , Nagisa can’t believe that he actually gets to kill someone? And he’s a little excited for it? That’s pretty wild, and he gets lost in the adrenaline for a second.

“Focus, Nagisa,” Gakushuu says, bringing up barriers and electric fields. Takaoka breaks them down nearly as fast as Gakushuu conjures them.

“How’d you kill him last time, again?” Karma asks.

“I hid my bloodlust, but I don’t think that’ll work again this time, since he might see that strategy coming,” Nagisa says. “Hey, hold on. We just need him to stay still, right? And you can cast your stun spell?”

“Uhh, so I’m cutting up the land over here. Do you not want me to do that anymore, or…?” Karma shouts from across the field, his circle half-finished.

“No, wait,” Nagisa stops to think. He needs to get a clear shot at Takaoka in order for him to connect the hit without being blown or swiped away. He needs to make sure the shot is enough to kill him, or Nagisa is going to be the one who winds up dead. He needs Takaoka to stop moving long enough for Gakushuu to land his stun.

“Guys, I think I have an idea?” Nagisa says, unsure.

“Shoot. You’re the one with the magical sword, how do you want to behead him?” Karma asks.

“When I distract him, and he’s staying still, Gakushuu can stun him! And while he’s stunned, Karma, you throw me over—uh, gently, please—and then you time it so that I’ll slice his head off as soon as he becomes unstunned!”

“I see… a lot of problems with that,” Gakushuu frowns. “But sure, if you think you can distract him well enough to get him to stay still.”

“And I have no doubt I can time a boost to ensure you get there in time, but I don’t think you’d do so well with _getting_ thrown?”

“Ehh, we can worry about that when we get there.” Nagisa waves his hand dismissively. “Let’s just do our best here.” 

He turns to face Takaoka. “Hey there, sir!” It was the same greeting that he used during the first duel. If Takaoka’s corruption was due to his loss there, he surely wouldn’t forget it.

The monster growls in response. So he definitely did remember. That was hopefully a sign that Nagisa’s plan would work, and not a sign that Nagisa was about to get killed.

“So uh, you know, duels…” Nagisa begins. _It doesn’t need to be a presidential speech, just enough to distract him_ , “You lost one! To, uh, me! Remember?”

It was a little clumsy but it worked well enough. The monster charges through the shields that Gakushuu had set up, no longer slowed by new ones since Gakushuu began to focus on another spell.

“Right, wait, stop! I have a proposition!” Nagisa says, running backwards without breaking eye contact.

Either the monster was too far gone to understand Nagisa’s words, or he simply wasn’t interested, but Takaoka lunges towards Nagisa and nearly snaps him in two clean, bitten pieces.

Karma crams a stick in the monster’s mouth just in time, moving with astounding speed and enough strength to force the monster back, though undamaged. “It’s enhanced by some durability potion I found in Gakushuu’s bag,” Karma explains to Nagisa after they run away. “But we’re all out of that, and any other stick he’d bite clean through, so no more of that, ok?”

Nagisa nods mutely in response. not quite able to forget the rancid breath that came from behind Takaoka’s fangs.

Gakushuu begins to cast his shields again while they wait. “Sorry, Nagisa. I don’t believe he’s human enough to be distracted to the extent of staying still.”

“What about that glue stuff you used against Karasuma a month ago?” Nagisa asks.

Gakushuu shakes his head. “He breaks right through them.”

“Well then, I’m all out of ideas.”

“That’s alright, I’m not.” Karma says. “Just force him into a hole, which I have already spent my energy half-completing, by the way, and then throw the sword between his eyes as he climbs up.”

“Hmm… Maybe if I were you, Karma,” Nagisa says. “But he can easily dodge while he climbs, and he’s gonna be moving pretty fast too. I don’t think my training’s gotten to the point where I can confidently hit him, and he wouldn’t fall for it multiple times.”

“Well, then.” Karma shrugs. “Hand over the sword to me.”

Nagisa shakes his head. “I can’t do that, Karma. The sword would lose the Goddess’ blessing if I voluntarily allow someone else to wield it.”

“What about you, Shuu?” Karma turns to Gakushuu, who’s expression was showing just the slightest bit of fatigue from the constant shield-spell casting. “It’s light magic that the monster’s weak to, right? Just whip out some light magic.”

“It’s more than light magic, it’s holy magic, and if I was able to use the Goddess’ energy like that, this fight would have been over long ago.”

“Sheesh, alright.” Karma says, looking down at Gakushuu’s bag. “What potions did you bring?”

“The basics: power, flight, speed…”

“Ooh! Alright.” Karma grins in that way when he only does when he gets a particularly genius idea. “I’ve got it.”

“Well then, spit it out. I’m starting to pull on my amulets’ reserves for the mana,” Gakushuu says, voice strained. 

“Alright, you don’t need to do anything, Gakushuu. Just sit there and look pretty, I guess.” _whoops, that wasn’t meant to come out, especially not during a fight, but hey, that expression? And—no, fight happening. Focus or you lose, Karma. And you don’t like losing._ “Uh, but do pass the flight potion, will you?”

“Oh!” Gakushuu’s eyes light up, in a way that’s got Karma’s face a little more flushed than it already was from the exercise. “I see what you’re planning. If you’re going straight up, the potion will allow you go to a max of 30 meters vertically before you start feeling any lightheadedness.”

“That should be enough, right?” Karma asks. “I don’t see why it wouldn’t.”

“And Nagisa,” Gakushuu turns to look at him, sweat beading on his forehead, “you can at least throw your sword in a straight line, correct?”

“Well, yeah, that’s a pretty basic—” Nagisa starts, but is interrupted by Karma shoving a lavender-tasting potion into his mouth. The potion tastes good, better than most of the others that he’s had to take. It reminds Nagisa of a field that he’s never visited, but can perfectly imagine in his head. It’s such a nice image that Nagisa almost feels lighter.

He opens his eyes, and nearly crashes into the shield’s top. He sputters, “Woah, hey! I’m, woah, what?”

“Just keep floating straight up. Don’t worry about anything else, or you’ll end up trying to fly. Don’t. It’ll take you too long to learn.” Karma calls. “Just wait for the monster guy to jump after you when you’ve reached around 25 meters. It’s strong, but it won’t be able to change its direction once it starts to fall back down.” 

“Ideally, time it for that split second when he stops in mid-air, when he’s no longer ascending, but has yet to begin his descent,” Gakushuu calls. “Use your skill in reverse, and draw attention to yourself instead of the opposite.”

“Oh! I’ll try!” Nagisa feels dizzy from the sudden sensation of being able to change his altitude with a single thought, and makes a note to definitely bug Gakushuu later for flying lessons (and hey, who knows, maybe reading lessons too). 

He seeks out his own aura, and brightens it, drawing Takaoka’s attention. He stops pawing at Gakushuu’s shield long enough to notice Nagisa slowly floating through it.

As soon as they make eye contact, Nagisa shoots up another five meters, then ten, then twenty, and all of a sudden Gakushuu, Karma, and Takaoka were but small figures on the ground far below him.

“Come and get me, Takaoka!” Nagisa calls, more to encourage his own confidence than anything, since he’s pretty sure Takaoka can’t hear him from all the way down there, even if he did have Dark-Lord-Magically-Enhanced ears.

Takaoka leaps up with a war cry and Nagisa steadies his sword. He waits for the moment when Takaoka begins to fall again, about two or three meters below him, and throws the sword. 

It pierces cleanly through Takaoka’s neck, and the roaring stops.

Nagisa exhales. It was over. The first time he’s killed anyone. “Um… How do I get down?”

Gakushuu makes a motion to his ear (probably, it was a bit hard to see from how high up he was), most likely indicating that he couldn’t hear him.

Karma grabs a rope from his pack and pulls Nagisa back to the ground.

“Hey, how’d it feel to kill your first high-level monster?” Karma asks. “If you think about it, he’s almost like a mini-boss, right?”

Nagisa shrugs, “I guess? But I mean, he was a human too, right? Is it alright for me to have killed him even if he was influenced by the Dark Lord’s magic?”

“Well,” Gakushuu says, “It’s not like there’s any way for him to have regained his human consciousness again. He was basically an animal at that point.”

“Right, no different from what you fought in the forest.” Karma adds.

“Yeah,” Gakushuu pats Nagisa’s shoulder. “I find it best to not think about it too much. Nothing you can do about it now.”

“I—” Nagisa starts, but was interrupted by Kayano flying over.

“Hey guys!” Kayano says. “What’d I miss?”

“Apparently, human-monster hybrids can only be defeated by the Chosen One.” Karma replies. “So you should finish training him soon.”

“Ugh, it’s not _me_ arranging the training, you gotta ask Koro and co. about that.” Kayano says. “And seriously? So what’d you guys do while Nagisa beat up the guy?”

“Save his life?” Gakushuu smiles teasingly. “If we weren’t needed, I would have already teleported us away.”

“Well, the main thing is that I’m not seeing any injuries, so let’s go hunt down that pudding recipe!” Kayano says, teleporting them back to Catopolis.

“Well, if we go see my father, I don’t think we’ll come out unscathed.”

But they do anyways, because what’s life without a little adventure?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew, I actually have a lot of online classes this week, so uh, who knows when the next (and last!) chapter is coming out.
> 
> Anyways, how do I categorize this? It's fantasy rpg au,,, but it's dumb _shipping_ fantasy rpg au


	3. New Endings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Drink responsibly, guys. But that being said, I have to admit that writing drunk Gakushuu was the best experience of my life.
> 
> Also yes, I _did_ write 2k words of an argument between two characters who've never canonically interacted. Oops. 
> 
> Also also yes, I may or may not have backseated Nagisa in his own story... I'm sorry bby.
> 
> ...anyways, enjoy!

“So, in conclusion, if it’s Karma who’s asking, then I wouldn’t mind.”

“Gakushuu,” Nagisa whispers, “that’s great and all, and I’m glad that you got your feelings sorted out, but we’re in the middle of a heist! It is not the time for your gay crisis!”

“Oh I had that years ago. Trust me, this comes nowhere near.”

“Shhh!!” Kayano puts a finger to her lips, changing to her fairy form, “We are here for pudding, and for pudding only. If you want Karma’s attention, then, well, you don’t need _our_ help for that. Just ask him out already!”

“Speaking of, did you tell Karma to return your carriage so that you could _gossip_ and _ask us for love advice_?!” Nagisa whisper-yells. “You can just _call us_ instead!”

“Uh, no. I sent Karma away because he’s the least subtle person I know, and I’d rather not die today, thanks.” Gakushuu replies. “And I’m not asking _you_ for love advice. In case you didn’t notice, my speech was more of a brainstorming session, and you two were excellent sounding boards. Thank you.”

“I hope you’re brainstorming ideas for a date, because I’ve only known you two for a month and a bit, but already I’m tired of seeing you guys dance around each other!” Nagisa says, a little louder.

“Right?” Kayano says, apparently forgetting that they were actually breaking into the High Priest’s house, and could be heard anytime. Gakushuu doesn’t want to bother using the energy to shush them. He would just have to accept the fact that he’s most likely going to have to see his father today. “Imagine going through _all of school_ with them!”

“I haven’t liked Karma for that long,” Gakushuu corrects. “Only since his Championship win.”

“Hmmm, I _wonder why that is_ …” Kayano smirks. “Maybe it had something to do with your affinity for all things showy and attractive? Maybe it had something to do with your respect for strength and skill? Maybe it—”

“—Alright,” Gakushuu interrupts, ears slightly red, “I wasn’t going to say anything, but if you two keep shouting my father _will_ wake up and he _will_ definitely kill us.”

“Is he really that scary?” Nagisa asks. “I’ve never met the guy, but everyone I talk to seems super intimidated by him.”

“There’s a good reason for that—” Gakushuu says at the same time that Kayano goes “He’s actually pretty harmless—”. They look at each other, attempting to stare the other down.

“He’s the High Priest. The Goddess wouldn’t allow him to do anything harmful,” Kayano says. “But he _is_ the most powerful person in the country, so I guess it’s like… he’s powerful enough to potentially be dangerous. So we don’t anger him, but he’s really helpful.”

“You are not allowed to testify to how intimidating he is until you’ve had to live with him for _18 years_ ,” Gakushuu says sharply. “Once you’ve suffered through that, get back to me.”

“He’s so nice though?”

“Because you’re not an Asano.”

“What about that priest in training? What was his name?”

“Ikeda. He’s new. I don’t know _how_ he puts up with Gakuhou though.”

Kayano sighs. “Just Give me one good reason for why he’s a bad father.”

“But he’s not a bad father?” Gakushuu frowns. “I never said that.”

“So—” Nagisa hold up his hands as a plea for the two to stop debating long enough for the information to sink in. “So your dad, basically a priest of the only church—I mean, if you call it a church—that exists here. So he’s like, the only messenger for the Goddess that you all worship—”

“—well, technically I’m a messenger too. Same with the priest-in-training,” Kayano points out.

“And there’s a bit of an atheist movement going on as well,” Gakushuu adds. “Typically, they aren’t born with skills or simply don’t want them.”

“Alright. One of the _highest-level_ messengers for the Goddess whom _most_ of you worship.” Nagisa corrects, taking a break to make sure the other two don’t have anything else to add. When neither of them did, he continues. “Right. So I’m hearing Kayano say that because of this position, even though he’s super powerful, he’s also super chill and kind and gentle—”

Gakushuu snorts.

“—But I’m _also_ hearing from Gakushuu that he’s basically the devil reincarnated.” Nagisa continues. “Please clarify for me: is he going to kill us for breaking into his home or not?”

“No, why would I do such a thing?” A new voice sounds from across the foyer. “And really, Gakushuu, if you wanted to drop by and say hello, you didn’t need to kill my plants and break in to do so.”

“Oh great, it’s you.” Gakushuu sighs. 

“Now, that’s no way to greet your father, especially when you haven’t seen him in 82 days,” Gakuhou says. “Please, I insist on you and your friends coming in for tea with me. Ikeda is still awake too.”

“See?” Kayano whispers to Nagisa. “He’s friendly. Gakushuu’s just biased.”

“I have good reason to be.” Gakushuu mutters in reply, because Kayano isn’t very good at whispering. 

“Well,” Nagisa says, tone slightly teasing. “I haven’t ever seen _this_ side of ‘the almighty’ Gakushuu before. One could almost say you’re… pouting.”

Kayano and Nagisa laugh. Gakushuu just silently sulks in reply, though he does grant them a small twitch in the corner of his mouth.

They enter the dining room, and Gakushuu prepares himself for possibly the most humiliating dinner conversation of his life. At least Karma wasn’t here.

* * *

If Gakushuu was ever going to break the law, it would be now, and it would be to murder his father.

“So, Gakushuu was lying when he told me that he was the top student in school?” Nagisa leans over the table, munching on his pastry.

“It’s not a _lie_ , I really _was_ a top student in school! Academically and otherwise!” Gakushuu says dejectedly. He can’t believe he’s defending this. It’s incredibly childish, though necessary. 

“But there’s an emphasis on the _a_ , as in, one of _two_ ,” Kayano points out. “Have you ever noticed that neither Karma nor I were around when he said such a thing? Because this is the first time I’ve heard of this.”

“Well, but Karma’s not that smart, is he?” Nagisa says. “Wait, not that he’s _dumb_ , or anything. I just didn’t take him for an academic type?”

“No, you’re absolutely correct. Karma is just naturally gifted at school,” Gakushuu shrugs. “That doesn’t necessarily make him intelligent.”

“I’m going to tell Karma you called him dumb,” Kayano says.

“Though I do believe that your claim is a slight exaggeration,” Gakuhou adds. “It was only for your first year of academic training that Karma relied on his innate skill. Afterwards, he began studying.”

“But I thought you guys had different classes?” Nagisa asks. “I thought mages and knights couldn’t take the same courses since you’re natural abilities are different?”

Gakushuu barks out a laugh, short and sarcastic, “We’re allowed to take whatever courses we want, which I believe is _quite a significant mistake_ from the _administrator of the school_ ,” he glares at Gakuhou. It was true that Gakushuu was the only one involved in the actual decision-making process when choosing his courses, but having the option to compete against Karma? That was too irresistible to pass up.

“I don’t see any reason why a son of mine—who has known his status as a mage since he was a mere infant, might I add—would subject himself to a swordsmanship class.” Gakuhou takes a sip of his tea. “Especially since that was your only failing grade.”

“I got my grades up at the end of the semester! And besides, I only took it because you convinced Karma to take the Magic Theory class!” Gakushuu says, only slightly aware that his hands have begun to heat up. Magic becomes unpredictable with emotions, after all, but Gakushuu was usually good at keeping himself in check.

“I would never do such a thing,” Gakuhou smiles pleasantly. “Maybe he just wanted your attention, since you didn’t give the poor boy the time of day.”

“Really?” Nagisa asks. “I thought you guys have been friends since childhood.”

“No, that would be me!” Kayano says. “I’ve known Karma since he was a baby, because Aguri took him in. His parents were absolute shi—er—garbage,” Kayano averts her eyes from Gakuhou’s, since fairy messengers of the Goddess weren’t supposed to swear, “and Aguri figured I was old enough to handle another person in the house.”

“So you’re like, adopted siblings?”

“No? It’s weird to think about. Legally, since I’m Aguri’s sister, he would be,” she shudders, “my adopted _nephew_ , and I hate that idea since we’re the same age, and Karma hates that title since he asserts his dominance at every opportunity, and he can’t do that if I’m his _aunt_. So we’re just best friends. No familial relation whatsoever.”

“Ooh, that’s fair,” Nagisa nods. “But then how did you guys and Gakushuu become friends?”

“Mostly because of Karma,” Kayano begins. “I just remember Karma getting upset about _something_ , though I can’t remember what—he was _always_ upset about something—and then he ended up pestering Gakushuu until they became close.”

“If only,” Gakushuu sighs. “The thing that he was pestering me about was a stupid bet. He challenged my friend—I’ve introduced you to Seo, right? Anyways, he challenged him to a duel, winner gets to demand one thing from any spectator who bet against him. I betted on Seo winning.”

Gakuhou chuckles at that, “which is the kind of thing an _inexperienced better_ would do. I’m surprised you didn’t read his aura before fighting, then you would have known who was stronger.”

“It—It was a small dispute between two _children_ in _school_! I was ten!” Gakushuu is usually the best person in the room at keeping his cool (that is, unless Karma had something to say about it), but Gakuhou has always been a rung above Gakushuu in the ladder of life. Thus, why Gakuhou is calmly insulting Gakushuu while enjoying his tea whereas hand-sized scorch marks are starting to appear on the table beneath Gakushuu’s hands.

“That is no excuse to lose a bet, especially when it involves a favour.” Gakuhou says pointedly. He takes a bite of his rose-flavoured mousse.

“Alright, well,” Gakushuu runs a hand through his hair, since strands were beginning to fall out of place. He turns back to Nagisa. “So anyways, I lost, whatever, no big deal, and Karma decided I had to give him my lunch.” He looks at Nagisa’s bewildered expression. “Please keep in mind that we were ten.”

“And Gakushuu always had the best lunches, though he’d never share it with anyone.” Kayano pouts at the memory.

“That’s because I would wake up an hour early to prepare it,” Gakushuu says. 

“I still don’t understand why you couldn’t have simply taken the lunch I prepared for you.” Gakuhou sighs. “All of the other children had meals prepared by their parents or guardians. Why didn’t you?”

Gakushuu glares at him as the table begins to smoke, “because then it wouldn’t be _my_ lunch, now _would it_?”

“And also he wouldn’t be able to show off his cooking skills if he took a lunch that his dad prepared.” Kayano nods. “So, long story short: while we were ten, any one of us would have killed for Gakushuu to give us some of his food.”

“Right,” Gakushuu says, “it was extremely annoying, though I can’t deny how validating it was.” As much as he loathed to admit it, he’s sought after validation—from his father, from himself—his whole life, and receiving it so easily from his classmates was admittedly extremely gratifying. 

“So Karma told you to give him your lunch?” Nagisa asks. 

Gakushuu nods. “Though I was ten, and I saw the kind of food that Aguri would make, and—I hate to say it, but—I didn’t want to hear Karma criticize my food.”

“So you opted to run away instead?” Nagisa teases. Gakushuu only hangs his head in response. It’s not that he’s ashamed of his skills, no, he knows that he’s not lacking in any ability he’d need others to see, but instead the compulsion to escape fear. He was a bit of a coward in his youth, and he can openly admit so now that he’s grown out of it.

“He ran away for like five years,” Kayano laughs. “Though he had no reason to, since his food was _sooo good_. Hey, that reminds me, Gakushuu, you should help with making the tapioca pudding!” She turns to Gakuhou. “Has Ikeda found the book yet?”

“Sorry!! I fell while trying to get to the higher shelves.” A new voice—Ikeda, the priest-in-training—calls from the corridor. “Here they are! All the books that seem to be related to cooking!”

“Woah!” Nagisa’s pretty sure he’s never been more excited to see a stack of books in his whole life. “Japanese! I can read this!”

“Nagisa, when you’re done with the whole ‘Dark Lord’ business, you should come to school.” Gakuhou suggests. “You can learn reading and writing in Eyarian as well as assist in translating your native Japanese.”

“Really? That’d be great, thanks!” Nagisa says, practically beaming.

“Alright! Fantastic!” Gakushuu gets up from his chair, which was flaming just a bit. “We’ve got the books. Let’s go now. I’ll even assist you in making your dish, but at my home.”

“I am in no hurry, as the night is still young. In fact, I’d encourage you to stay here, and we can continue this lovely discussion. You may use our kitchen if you like.” Gakuhou says.

Kayano and Nagisa, like the traitors they were, decided to stay. Gakushuu has no such intention, so he begins packing up his bags. 

“And Gakushuu,” Gakuhou smiles. “I do believe I’m owed an apology for my poor plants, whom you’ve apparently decided needed to die.” Gakushuu flushes a bit, embarrassed. Gakuhou continues. “How about you stay and aid our guests in the creation of this dish from Nagisa’s homeworld?”

Gakushuu thinks up a hundred arguments and excuses for why he _would be very well just leaving, thanks_ , but then also thinks of Gakuhou’s retorts, which would surely leave no room for disproof nor counter-reasoning. And because Gakushuu has yet to win against his father, relents and sits back down.

“Excellent!” Gakuhou smiles. “Now, where were we?”

* * *

“I don’t think this is correct,” Gakushuu frowns at the mix. “Nagisa’s instructions aren’t very clear.”

“He just read what’s on the label,” Ikeda shrugs. “So I guess it’s just the measurements? I mean, what’s a _tablespoon_?”

“I imagine it’s meant to be a spoon that’s slightly larger than the ‘teaspoon’” Gakushuu reasons. “Though, I’m not sure what size the ‘cup’ is meant to refer to.”

“I’ll just get a regular-sized mug.”

As they try and puzzle through the instructions that Nagisa helped them translate, Gakushuu notices that Ikeda keeps glancing his way, as though he wanted to ask a question.

“Yes?” Gakushuu inquires. “What is it?”

“Huh—?” Ikeda looks over, and falls off the chair he was standing on to reach the top shelf. Gakushuu shoots a cushioning charm his way before Ikeda makes impact with the floor. “Oh, jeez, thanks.” Ikeda stands up, looking sheepish. “Do you really need to keep everything to high up?”

Gakushuu shrugs, “we always levitate them down, so keeping them high saves space.”

“Ah, right,” Ikeda looks down. “Did the High Priest tell you about my magic?”

“No, we don’t stay in touch.”

Ikeda looks embarrassed at this. “Uh, oh, yeah. I suppose that’s why you don’t know. I’m, uh, not the most… magically adept.”

“You’re not a mage?” That’s unusual, especially for a priest-in-training. They’re usually selected from the best of the best, as only those with the highest mana reserves are able to communicate with the Goddess. It was why Gakushuu was never a candidate, though he’s never had any interest in taking the same role as his father.

“No, not that, it’s kind of… the opposite, I guess.” Ikeda looks down at his hands. “It’s more like, I have _too much_ magic. If I tried to levitate anything down from there, I might bring down the whole mansion.”

“Oh.” Gakushuu stares at him. Ikeda should be around his late teens by now, and Gakushuu can’t help but feel a slight resentment. 

His mana reserve was not anything that he could control, as it’s the ability of his heart to contain and manipulate the magic that he does. If he tries to go beyond his capacity, magic becomes unpredictable, with unintended (and potentially dangerous) side-effects or a failed spell altogether. It’s not as though Gakushuu has a _low_ mana reserve by any means, though he’s only ever been interested in high level spells since his youth, and those haven’t been possible until he discovered that jewelry could be enchanted to contain extra mana.

But Ikeda, on the other hand, could _learn_ to overcome his problem. _Too much magic?_ Control could be taught, but natural ability couldn’t be.

Gakushuu realizes that he’s been quiet for too long. “I’m sorry to hear that. It must be difficult,” he responds, because if Gakuhou or Karma isn’t involved, then Gakushuu has no problem with self-control.

“I came here to learn control from your dad, and I think I’m progressing well enough, but I’m not quite good enough at it yet that I can use it in a non-protected area.” Ikeda suddenly looks up, a little started. “Well, wait, no. I mean, not that your dad’s a bad teacher. He’s pretty cool, actually, but I guess I’m not quite that fast of a learner, huh?”

“I’m sure you’re fine. If you’ve yet to see him as the monster he really is, then I don’t think he’s disapproved of you yet.” Gakushuu says, letting just a slight bit of bitterness into his voice.

“Ah—yeah, I wanted to ask you about that.” Ikeda says. “I don’t know if it’s rude of me, but…” and he trails off, most likely thinking of how he should phrase his question.

For a minute, it’s silent, with the exception of Gakushuu stirring the mix (using magic, obviously) and Ikeda shuffling his feet. Finally, he says “ugh, screw it. I don’t know how to politely phrase this, but what’d he do to you?”

“What do you mean?” Gakushuu asks. Ikeda is obviously referring to his father, of course, but he hasn’t the slightest idea what he means.

“I mean, I always hear him talking about you like a proud father, and you seem like a pretty reasonable person—you know, you’re successful, you’re probably rich as hell, you have _plenty_ of suitors—and yet you seem like you hold a lot of anger towards him? Was he—” Ikeda swallows. “Did he… hurt you?”

“What?” Gakushuu exclaims. He’s not one to lose his calm, but Ikeda’s imagination was really in a league of its own. “ _No_ , of course he didn’t _hurt me_! If he did, then I have no reason to be standing here right now.”

“Oh.” Ikeda lets out a sigh of relief. “That’s good. Then I can assume it’s not that serious?”

“No, it’s definitely serious.” Gakushuu stops stirring his mix. “He’s never hurt me, but he sure as hell is the worst person to have as a dad.”

Ikeda opens his mouth, but Gakushuu continues before any more outrageous ideas come out of his mouth. “You weren’t in the house while I was growing up, but if you were, you’d understand.”

Gakushuu takes a deep breath. He’s never told anyone before, except Karma one night when they’ve had a few drinks more than usual (and the usual was a lot). “My mother… had a week heart, so she was never able to do any spells without harming herself. From what I’ve heard, she’s an amazing person, of course, but that didn’t make it any easier for her to give birth to me.” Gakushuu pauses, allowing his accelerating heart rate to drop a bit before he continues. “She passed away during labour.”

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Ikeda says, quiet and gentle. 

Gakushuu shrugs, “I never knew her, so I can’t say I have too many opinions on the matter.”

“Did… Does he blame you for it?”

Gakushuu shrugs again, “he used to. He figured pushing me to my studies was a good way to distance myself from him.”

Ikeda, the sympathetic sap that he was, looked ready to burst into tears, and nods. “so that’s why you hate him.”

Gakushuu turns around to meet Ikeda’s eyes. “Wha—First off, I don’t hate him, I never said I did. And second, those were probably the best years of my life. Nobody ever bothered me about anything. Once I finished whatever arithmetic study booklet I was given, I was free to do whatever I wanted. There was so much time to just research back then,” Gakushuu sighs, reminiscing. “It was when Gakuhou started treating me like a _child_ that I realized he was a monster.”

Ikeda says silent, with a questioning look on his face. 

“Ugh, how do I describe it. It’s like, he desn’t get the right to dismiss me for five years, during my _infant_ years, no less, and then proceed to treat me like anything less than an equal, you know?” Gakushuu was rambling, he knows this, and two-thirds of his friends were in the other room waiting for the dessert that hasn’t come anywhere _near_ completion, but he can’t bring himself to stop.

“So, you don’t like him because he treats you like his son?” Ikeda tries to clarify, his expression suddenly containing a bit of anger.

“I guess that’s one way to put it. If I’m ‘the High Priest’s son’, then that’s all I’ll ever be, right? I’ll never be ‘Gakushuu Asano’, just a son of one of the greats. It’s like how everyone knows you as just ‘the High Priest’s trainee’, rather than your name.”

“Uh, I guess?” Ikeda says, no longer sounding sympathetic. “I don’t know, I find it doesn't bother me too much. I mean, sure, that’s my title right now, but someday, I’m gonna be the High Priest, and then people will know me by that.”

“Yes, however,” Gakushuu argues. “You two aren’t related by blood. You’re not expected to be at the same level as he is, and he’s never going to be disappointed in you for not surpassing him.”

“But I thought you wanted to be treated as an equal?” 

“It’s a son’s duty to surpass his father’s legacy, that’s common knowledge.” Gakushuu shrugs. “But that’s not easy when he’s the High Priest of a whole continent. Unless I go and conquer the world—which takes too long, by the way—the only way for me to surpass him is to absolve the need for him.”

“Um, that’s a good ambition, I think, but that’s a bit of an old-fashioned ideal, don’t you think?” Ikeda points out. “That your only duty is to surpass your parents?”

“Well, if we don’t, then how is society ever going to evolve?”

“But you’re also your own person, who can go down a different path than your ancestors! Your individuality is what _separates_ you from those before you!”

“Right, but there _is_ no surpassing him in _any_ path. I was born a mage, so I had no choice but to pursue the magical arts.”

“So was I!”

“And?” Gakushuu glares. “Do you want to start comparing skills? I can guarantee you, your power exceeds mine.”

“I’m not looking for—no! I’m just saying that, I just think that you’re very lucky to have a father who’s alive and who loves you. Not many people can say the same, and I think you’re throwing that away.” He averts his eyes, and Gakushuu wonders if Ikeda has suffered through the loss of a loved one. He took note to be a little less crass about the subject, though not quite enough to give up this argument..

The pudding-in-progress sits untouched on the counter. Gakushuu is about to add Ikeda’s name to the short list of people who could make him lose his cool. “I treasure him plenty, and I don’t intend on allowing him to die before I surpass him.”

“Life isn’t a competition! I tried to beat the High Priest in so many things before I realized that sometimes—sometimes people are just better at some things than you are, and all you can do it learn from them!”

“Not for me. I’m not a quitter, and I’m not about to allow some old man to dictate how far I can go in life.”

“I think I’m happy with how I am, since I’m not trying my whole life to reach an unachievable goal.”

“I’m also content, since I have ambition, and it’s been a diving force behind my success.”

They glare at each other, before the smell of smoke registers. Ikeda breaks eye contact first, mostly to panic at the mess of a room that they’ve created. Fires spread across the wooden tiles, although they’ve been coated with wax enchanted with flame-stopper. The stove exploded, which must have escaped their notice, and the pudding is nowhere to be seen.

“So…” Gakushuu says slowly. “They probably heard us.”

“Oh _shit_ , the High Priest is going to kill me for this.” Ikeda mutters. 

“I’ll help you clean up. If you’re willing to do magic, I don’t suppose there’s a way for you to make anything ‘too clean’, now is there?” The looks Ikeda gives him tells him everything he needs to know, as he walks across the kitchen to pick up a sweeping broom. Gakushuu begins chanting while Ikeda begins to sweep.

They’re silent for a few minutes. Ikeda suddenly takes a deep breath. “I think, from one powerful mage to another, that maybe we shouldn’t try to rile each other up too much.”

Gakushuu stares for a second, realizing that he’s probably trying to end their dispute in a tie. Normally, Gakushuu wouldn’t roll over so easily, but there’s too much of a conflict with their base ideals to come to a compromise. All they could do is respect their different beliefs and move on. “I can agree with you on that.”

“And if anyone from the other room asks, say that nothing happened.”

“If we deny everything, they can’t keep pestering us for details,” Gakushuu agrees.

Of course though, Ikeda wasn’t quite done with the questioning, deciding to quietly ask one more question. “…Does you father know how you feel?”

“Of course he does, and he respects that I need to surpass him sometime before he retires, so he plans to keep improving to make sure it’ll never happen.” Gakushuu sighs. “A true monster, indeed.”

Ikeda laughs. “Well, I guess if he keeps on improving he’ll have more to teach me.”

Gakushuu smiles in response. “This isn’t going to make me visit more often, you know. I have a new business now, and it’ll make me the richest person in all of Rheyar, so I am a bit too busy for pleasantries.”

“Well, that’s alright. We live in an age of communication, and all that.” Ikeda writes down his Comm-Orb address on a napkin, and hands it to Gakushuu. “If I ever have trouble with something, do you mind helping me?”

“There’s nothing I would know that Gakuhou wouldn’t, but… why not?” Gakushuu plugs the information into his Orb.

“I won’t call you too often, I promise!” Ikeda smiles. “You’re pretty busy with your whole thing, after all.”

“Right.” Gakushuu nods. “And I’m sure you’ll be greatly successful as the next priest.”

They shake hands in a silent agreement. They don’t quite see eye to eye, but neither can deny that the other is quite a force to be reckoned with, and at the very least, they can respect strength. Not all friendships come easily, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t try. 

At the very least, they could be reluctant acquaintances, who both know what it’s like to be Gakuhou’s student.

* * *

“So he goes, and like, listen, I don’t hate Ikeda. I don’t even dislike the guy! But he’s a little… uh… what’s the word… he’s like, too much?” Gakushuu drawls, obviously more than a little drunk. “And like, I get that he’s got his own ideals and all that, but he could bear to show a little respect to me _too_ , you know?”

“Sure.” Karma gently pats Gakushuu on the arm. He almost regrets how sober he is, since Nagisa needed him to take over for Karasuma the next day in swordsmanship class and he was _not_ planning on being hungover for that, but he at least doesn’t regret seeing Gakushuu very loose-lipped and relaxed.

“You _know?_ ” Gakushuu repeats. “I’m fortu…furtonat… _lucky_ to have a dad, obviously, but that doesn’t mean I should have to… ugh, how do I say it? I don’t have to put up with him?”

“Yeah, but I mean,” Karma begins, trying to word it in a way that wouldn’t result in a deep-fried Karma, but then goes _fuck it_ , because he’s Karma Akabane, and he can say whatever the hell’s on his mind. “Have you ever considered it’s just because you and your dad are too similar?”

“What d’you mean?” Gakushuu slurs, narrowing his eyes. “We’ve never been on the same level, and you know it.”

“What I’m saying is, that you and him are both too stubborn to admit defeat. The second you decided that you needed to surpass him was the second he decided to make sure that’ll never happen.”

“Right, ‘cause he’s a bitch and a _half_ ” Gakushuu knocks back another shot.

“But then also, because you’re too stubborn to allow him to just do that, you keep trying to surpass him.”

“Yes. That is what I told you.”

“But then doesn’t that create a bit of an endless cycle?”

“Yeah, that’s kind of the point, Kar.” Gakushuu takes another gulp of his drink. Karma is taken aback. Does Gakushuu always start calling Karma by a nickname when he gets drunk? Gakushuu has never given Karma a memory potion, and maybe _that’s_ why? If so, then Karma _definitely_ didn’t mind staying sober after all.

“By ‘that’s the point’, you mean…?” Karma asks.

“I _mean_ , like, my _point is_ , that I would never get anywhere in life without my ambition, cause I’m not naturally gifted at everything like you are. I mean, I can do magic, and you can’t, but that’s besides the point.” Gakushuu pauses his spiel to take a breath. “ _Anyways_ , I don’t see the problem with this father-son relationship, ‘cause _look at me_. I’m hella fuckin’ rich! Ikeda has some valid points, but that doesn’t give him any right to correct my personal philosof…philohsu…ugh, you know what I’m trying to say.”

“Yeah, I get that.” Karma says. “But if you’re saying that we shouldn’t judge other peoples’ philosophies, then you’re not allowed to stop me from going to fights anymore.”

“No problem! You’re pretty sexy when you spar anyways.” Gakushuu orders another drink, and Karma stares, mouth agape, and for the first time in his entire life, completely speechless.

“What?” Karma says after a full minute of silence.

“I _said_ , that you’re really pretty in a fight,” Gakushuu looks over at Karma, eyes shining and face flushed with alcohol. “I mean, I won’t lie, you smell like shit afterwards, but that’s not anything a spell can’t fix. And your opponent always ends up crying, which isn’t really a good look. But, _damn_ , dude, has anyone ever told you how _strong_ you are? Not that I wouldn’t be able to beat you in a fight, but you could also beat _me_ in a fight, you know?”

“Uh,” was all that Karma could say. “So you’re saying that you respect my strength because it’s at your level?”

“Sure. Not just your strength though, d’you know how brilliant your eyes are whenever you laugh?” Gakushuu takes a sip of his drink, nearly missing his mouth and spilling it on his already-slightly-burnt clothes. “And speaking of your laugh, you know how nice of a laugh you have? Even though it’s the stuff of nightmares, you still manage to pull it off.”

“…Right.” Karma takes the drink out of Gakushuu’s hand. “I think… and I can’t believe I’m about to say this… but I think you’ve drunk enough today. I’ll take you home.”

“Sure! I’ll teleport us there!” Gakushuu raises his hand and prepares to chant.

“ _No_ , what the fuck?” Karma swats Gakushuu’s shoulder. He probably hit him harder than necessary, since Gekushuu let out a surprised yelp. “You can’t cast while drunk! The equations or whatever will get messed up, and I’m gonna end up on some deserted island.”

“Formulas,” Gakushuu corrects, nearly tripping over his feet at the door. “The _formulas_ get messed up, and I can cast just fine, thankyouverymuch.”

“I’ll just walk us there.” Karma hooks Gakushuu’s arm around his shoulder, and begins heading in the direction of Gakushuu’s apartment.

He only makes it a few steps out the door before Gakushuu catches him off-guard again. 

“Kar—” Gakushuu drawls, his voice drooping with alcohol and fatigue. “Do you think that we could ever… you know… be a thing?”

Karma looks at the other man slung across his shoulders. He was going to be a nightmare to deal with after he drinks a memory potion, that’s for sure. “You’re drunk. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Gakushuu, for some odd reason, finds this amusing. “When have I ever _not_ known what I’m talking about?”

“Well then,” maybe he found out about Karma’s feelings? Was Gakushuu drunk enough to start making fun of Karma for something that he couldn’t control? “If you’re messing around, I’ll kill you.”

“Why would I ‘mess around’ about this, Kar?” Gakushuu leans further into Karma’s arms. “I care about you, like, as more than a friend and whatever, so I could never joke about something like this. So. Answer?”

Karma sighs. If this was all some kind of misunderstanding… “Shuu, what do you mean by ‘a thing’? I’m up for casual sex, but not with you.” Karma’s sure his face is as red as his hair, possibly even more so. He tries to walk a bit more, adjusting Gakushuu’s weight on his shoulder as he does. This time, he’s managed to find a wobbly but consistent pace.

“Hmm…” Gakushuu hums, thinking. Though Karma can’t be sure how much clear thinking he’s got with all the liquor muddling up his head. “I guess… We’d be dueling partners?”

Karma lets out a short laugh. “You’re crazy. If that’s your definition of dating, no wonder you haven’t found a spouse yet.”

“And you’re telling me you’d like anything different?” And those light purple eyes met Karma’s once more, and Karma takes a second to recollect his composure.

“Well,” Karma begins. “I’d obviously want that, though I’d probably win all the time now, since you’ve apparently fallen into alcoholism.”

“I have—” Gakushuu stumbles over a rock. “—not fallen into alcoholus… alcochol… dammit.”

Karma laughs, and gently pokes Gakushuu’s face. “Though I guess dating you wouldn’t be the _worst_ thing that could happen to me.” 

Gakushuu looks up, beaming. “That’s strangely sweet of you.” He squints his eyes. “Shit, did I follow the wrong redhead home?”

“Shut up,” Karma gently shifts Gakushuu on his shoulder. Even drunk out of his mind, he still manages to find his usual quips, though with not nearly the same high level of vocabulary. “It’s just that I’m basically, objectively, the hottest man alive. there’s no competition here.”

“Lies.”

“That’s not what you were saying earlier.” Karma grins.

“Well, I said you were sexy. Or hot. One of the two.” Gakushuu pauses to think, then shrugs because he couldn’t remember. “Well, whatever it was, you’re definitely not number one in the _whole world_. That would be me, of course.”

“I could continue this childish argument, but uh, a) you’re drunk as fuck, and b) we both know who’s _really_ the best here,” Karma smiles. “And I’m just saying, if we started dating, I could move in with you.”

“That’s a little fast, don’t you think?”

Karma shrugs. “If you don’t want to, I don’t care. But also, you’re drunk, so maybe we should have this conversation in the morning… if you’re not joking, that is.”

“Aww, is your memory starting to go?” Gakushuu pouts. “I already _said_ that I’m one- _million_ -percent serious about this.”

“Isn’t that a hyperbole? I don’t think you’d can be ‘one million percent’ sure about anything.” Karma laughs, because Gakushuu must be _really_ drunk if he was relaxed enough to start using expressions like ‘one million percent’.

Gakushuu rolls his eyes. Or at least, he tries to roll his eyes. He’s not very coordinated right now. “Whatever. I’m 97% sure, then in that case.”

“Where’d the other 3% go?”

“The other 3% went into stupid logistics.” Gakushuu sighs. “Nobody likes logistics.”

“Care to share with the class, Shuu?”

Gakushuu sighs again, though sounding more tired this time. “Logistics that say how people stop feeling attraction after they get together with the object of—er—I forget the word. Their crush? Whatever.” Gakushuu waves his hand. “After people start dating, there’s no more ‘thrill of the chase’, etc. etc., so people don’t care anymore.”

“But that’s assuming anyone would want to waste the energy courting _you_. Gakushuu ‘self-proclaimed king of the world’ Asano.” Karma says. “Who’d put in that kind of effort if they didn’t care?”

“You never did anything.”

“That’s because you’re smart enough to figure it out if I did. And you know about my crippling fear of rejection.”

“Hmm.” Gakushuu thinks for a second. “Well, but couples start to feel trapped in relationships all the time. They start looking for excitement, so they wanna cheat because they like the idea of getting caught… or something like that.”

“Well, we’re adventurers, aren’t we? We can find our adventure outside, with monsters and fights. We wouldn’t feel the need to do anything nasty, unless the other gives permission? I dunno what kind of shit you’re into, but maybe you should answer that question in the morning.”

“We _used_ to be adventurers. Now we’re just businessmen.”

“Whatever. Money is money, and also, that’s not stopping us from going to underground fights.” Karma shrugs.

“Ugh, Karma, I’m _not_ going to break the law for you!”

“Technically, the fights are only ‘discouraged’, not illegal. And I guess there’s… ugh… regular clubs.” Karma shivers.

“‘Discouraged’ and ‘illegal’ are basically the same thing, and I really, _really_ don’t want to go to court. Also, regular clubs are fine, there’s just more rules?”

“Is it ‘cause you’re dad’s the judge?”

“ _YES_ , of _course_ it’s because my dad’s the judge! Why else would I not want to go?” Gakushuu pouts again.

“I think, hypothetically, if we were to date, then I’d take you out to all the places where your dad’s influence doesn’t reach, just to give you a goddamn break.”

Gakushuu is silent. Karma turns to see him staring, eyebrows furrowed, right at Karma. “What?” Karma asks.

“Are you _sure_ you’re not some stranger?”

“Am I sure— _Yes!_ Of course I’m sure I’m not some stranger! I’ve known you since we were ten!”

“The Karma I know wouldn’t say anything that messed with his ‘tough guy’ persona. And that line was possibly the sappiest thing I’ve ever heard.” Gakushuu considers something for a minute. “I want proof.”

“What kind?” Karma deadpans. “I’m not letting you cast any spells on me while you’re drunk.”

“I wasn’t going to anyways,” Gakushuu says as he innocently stashes away his spellbook. “Just tell me something only Karma would know.”

“‘Only Karma’ would know a lot of things. For example, how you can’t wield a sword for shit.”

“Ughh,” Gakushuu covers his ears, like the drunk idiot he is. “How about something _nice_ that only Karma would know?”

“Well, being nice all the time is a bit boring, yeah? You know I lo—I respect you a lot.” _damn, ok, confessing your feelings to a drunk dude is not the best way to go_ “And you know full well if I’m not here to put a check on your ego, you’d go and do some really stupid shit.”

“The same could be said for you, Karm.” Gakushuu says, nodding. “Huh. I can’t make a lot of nicknames for you, can I? Mine’s easy, and yours is… Karma.”

“Hey! My name is _leagues_ better than yours, I’ll have you know!” Karma nudges Gakushuu again. “And yeah, I think our friendship, at the very least, was based on mutual respect. I don’t give a shit about all those ‘studies’ or ‘statistics’, since I think there’s no reason for us to lose our mutual respect just ‘cause we can like… kiss… or hold hands… or whatever.” Karma turns his eyes to the ground, because he sounds like a sap, and he _knows it_.

“Well, I guess that’s a pass from me then,” Gakushuu says, then passes out, snoring lightly. 

Karma doesn’t know how to feel about this. Now that there isn’t another person to bounce conversation with, it was just Karma and his own thoughts.

It’s true, what he said, about how he doesn’t have any doubts that they’d work out, since their friendship miraculously turned out alright. If they can handle managing a business together without killing each other, or join a fight while working together, then how hard could a relationship be?

Obviously, there would be bumps. They both have strong personalities—Karma could acknowledge that much—and there’s no lack of pride from both of them. But they also know when to relent, and when they’ve taken things too far. And if worst comes to worst, then they’re both mature enough to handle apologizing.

Karma’s never respected anybody as much as he respects Gakushuu (except maybe Koro and Aguri, but those are his parents, so that’s different) and he doesn’t doubt that Gakushuu feels the same way. They have their mutual friends, whom they care for very much, but they’re not the same thing. Gakushuu could find a powerful mage acquaintance in Ikeda, but their ideals differ too wildly for them to ever be closer than decent friends.

Karma obviously wasn’t the only person who Gakushuu has ever connected with, just as Gakushuu wasn’t the only person Karma has connected with. But if nothing else, that just proves how close they were, since they’ve stuck around for this long.

_Once Gakushuu has waken up_ , Karma decides, _I’ll ask him out to lunch._ After all, there’s no potential for rejection after the other party has essentially already confessed.

* * *

The light streams into the room, and Gakushuu lets out a curse. He fumbles around for his clock, knocking over some things in the meantime, before realizing that someone—probably Karma, since he was the one who took him out drinking—had shut off his alarm.

“Hey Shuu, I know you’re hungover, but we’re going to miss Nagisa’s class if we don’t leave soon,” Karma walks into Shuu’s room, probably alerted by the noise that Gakushuu was awake. “Remember? I’m supposed to cover for Karasuma today.”

Gakushuu groans, holding his head. “Why does that mean I should come too?”

“Because we’re going for lunch after.”

“It’s already midday,” Gakushuu says, looking at his clock. “After training it would be well into the afternoon.”

“Well then, dinner.” Karma shrugs. “You can pick where.”

If Gakushuu wasn’t so focused on collecting his bearings, he would have taken the time to thoroughly analyze what Karma just said, and the underlying implications in his tone.

“Oh, here,” Karma brings Gakushuu a steaming mug. “Wake-up Brew.”

“You’re being… suspiciously kind,” Gakushuu notes, though he takes the mug anyways. “What did you do?”

“Nothing!” Karma seems to find this humourous. “What’s with you and not accepting my perfectly natural kindness?”

“It’s because I know you too well. So.” Gakushuu takes another gulp of his brew. “Do I even _want_ to drink a memory potion? Or maybe this is something that can remain unknown for the rest of my life… if for nothing else than my own sanity.”

“Well,” Karma’s ears turn red. “I did want to ask you about something… hmm.”

_Shit,_ Gakushuu realizes. This is the first time that Karma stayed sober while Gakushuu was drinking, and if he remembered everything… “I typically begin sprouting nonsense after a few drinks. I hope I didn’t say anything alarming or rude.”

“You’re always rude.” Karma says, then pauses to think. “But I doubt that it’s all lies while you’re drunk. It’s gotta come from some place of truth, no?”

_Damn_ , “well, sure.” Gakushuu was too hungover for this. He makes a mental note to create a hangover potion—he's done the impossible before, so if anyone's going to make it, it may as well be him—as soon as possible so that he no longer has a muddy head while trying to reason with someone like Karma. “But logically speaking, couldn’t mixing two truths together create a lie?”

“There wasn’t much mixing words yesterday.” Karma stares at Gakushuu, amber eyes glowing with resolution. “I don’t believe you were lying yesterday.”

Gakushuu swallows his brew, and it feels lodged in his throat. “Well, you’d have to tell me what I said first. If I caused any offence—”

“If anything,” Karma interrupts. “You’re offending me more right now by not owning up to it.”

“Right then,” Gakushuu says. He’s got a terrifyingly clear idea of what Karma is talking about, but in the off-chance that he wasn’t, Gakushuu wasn’t going to take the risk. “Well then? Your response.” _That’s a fairly good safe answer._

“So then, you weren’t messing with me? You didn’t say anything to mock me or my feelings?” Karma says, sounding almost vulnerable. 

“I would never do that.” Even with their arguments, they’ve always found a place to draw the line, and neither of the two would ever dare cross it.

“Well then,” Karma leans down. “You wouldn’t mind if…” he trails off. Gakushuu closes his eyes.

Their lips brush softly against one another. Gakushuu’s aware that he probably reeks of alcohol from the night before, though he can’t bring himself to care all too much. _Well, actually_ , Gakushuu discretely mutters a teeth-cleaning spell, though he’s sure that Karma heard, since they were leaning so close together. If he did though, he didn’t show any sign of it, since he leans back down. 

It’s almost… peaceful. Obviously, the Dark Lord’s revival has never been too big of a deal for them, since it’s not their job to kill him, but it’s been a background stressor nonetheless. That, along with Gakushuu’s worries about Ikeda or his father, and along with Karma’s fear of rejection, fades away with the soft morning light streaming in through the curtains. 

Gakushuu felt he would enjoy this a lot more if his head didn’t insist on pounding with every slight movement. Someone sighs gently, though Gakushuu couldn’t tell who it was. “So. How long?”

“You’ve seen my dick before, Shuu.” Karma playfully swats Gakushuu’s shoulder. “And get your head out of the gutter, creep.”

Gakushuu laughs, “I meant, how long have you liked me?”

“Sometime during school. Can’t remember when though.”

“Huh. And you, Karma ‘can’t hold on to secrets if his life depended on it’ Akabane, took this long to tell me?”

“It’s only _others’_ secrets that I can’t hold. Mine are safe and secure.”

“No? You’re pretty obvious with your own too, I’m afraid.”

“Then how did it take you this long to figure it out?”

“I didn’t want to assume.” Gakushuu leans forwards for another kiss. “But I could get used to this. You’re not the worst person I could date.”

Karma laughs.

“What’s so funny?” Gakushuu asks. 

“You’ll know once you drink the memory potion. Apparently we think alike.” Karma responds.

“Well, if we _really_ thought alike you wouldn’t be asking me for permission to enter illegal fighting rings.”

“Aww, but Shuu, I seem to recall you saying how attractive I was when I fought?” Karma teases. Gakushuu’s expression immediately changes to one of alarm. 

He laughs, “shit, I really went all out after a few drinks, huh?”

“Maybe,” Karma says. “We should stop drinking. It’s probably bad for our livers, etc. etc.”

“And also it would involve less drunk spellcasting on my dad’s plants.”

“And also it would involve less of the public seeing us drunk off our asses.”

“But,” Gakushuu says after a beat of silence. “We do limit our drinking to one night a week.”

“And,” Karma adds. “We drink lots of water, so nobody can say that we’re killing our livers.”

Gakushuu makes a sound of agreement, “and we make sure that nobody ever gets hurt… except my father.”

“And,” Karma smiles. “It was the only thing that allowed us dumbasses to confess.”

“That’s true. Though, it's you _you_ who's a dumbass, because I was planning on confessing even without being under the influence.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Gakushuu shrugs. “No point in doing it now, but it was going to involve a dragon fight.”

“Aww, shit.” Karma lets out a laugh. “Well then, forget _this_ ever happened. You’re still sleeping and this is all a dream. Proceed with whatever cool-ass plan you’ve got.”

Gakushuu smiles, “well, I guess it could still be arranged.”

Suddenly, Karma’s comm-orb buzzes with a text. Nagisa’s face appears in the air. 

“Hey Karma! Sorry to bother you, but are you still covering for Karasuma for sword training today?”

“Oh shit, I forgot about that,” Karma says. “Well, I can always say I got caught up. Nagisa’s not the type to mind.”

“At least give him something as an apology,” Gakushuu says. “Like some gold, or something.”

Karma smiles in agreement, “are you coming with me?”

“I can teleport you there, but…” Gakushuu runs his hand through his hair, feeling all the tangles. “I’ll catch up.”

Karma laughs again, “alright. When you get there, let me know where you picked for dinner.”

“Well, I think it’d be better off as a surprise,” Gakushuu says, knowing full well that Karma hated surprises if he wasn’t the one crafting them. They kiss once more before Gakushuu teleports Karma away.

* * *

“So, dinner?” Karma asks after training. “Where were you thinking?”

“Well,” Gakushuu waves goodbye to Nagisa before turning to meet Karma’s eyes. “I thought I could cook for you. You know, like old times.”

“We haven’t even been dating a day, and you already want to become a housewife?” Karma grins. “I mean, sure.”

Gakushuu smacks Karma on the arm, and picks up his stuff to begin walking back. “If you think that cooking is exclusively a housewife thing, then neither of us would survive.”

Karma shrugs, “Yeah, but still. You haven’t cooked for me since… damn, since that day when your dad forced you to apologize for running away from that bet. You remember, right? He forced you to cook you to invite me over for dinner.”

“Ugh,” Gakushuu groans. “Don’t even try to remind me.”

“You should have just given me your lunch. Why didn’t you?”

“I don’t even remember. I was 10. It was forever ago.”

Karma laughs, “I’ve never known you to have forgotten anything in your whole life. Come on, a cheap lie like that won’t fool me.”

“Alright,” Gakushuu sighs, casting a quick shielding spell for their eyes as the sun sets. “I would say that it was mostly because I didn’t think I’d measure up to Aguri’s cooking. I was wrong, apparently.”

“Yeah, listen,” Karma nods. “Aguri’s fantastic, and I’d literally be dead without her, but her food only looks and smells good. It’s like reverse stinky cheese.”

“Yeah, so now that’s just embarrassing.” Gakushuu was going to have to make his friends sign a contract to never discuss this again. “By the way, how is she doing? Does Kayano cook for you guys now?”

“I don’t know. There’s too much noise with everybody in the house now, so I’m more out of the house than in it.”

“Huh. Is Koro adjusting ok?”

“He’s fine. Completely moony-eyed over Aguri, and she reciprocates.” Karma shudders. “There’s not enough room for their gross mushiness.”

“Is that why you’re always at my place?”

“Yeah. That and you’re a pretty cool person.”

“I know.” Gakushuu laughs. 

They continue walking down the streets to Gakushuu’s apartment. There was no hurry, so they had no need to teleport and waste Gakushuu’s mana supply. After all, he uses a decent amount of magic to cook, so he should preserve it.

“There’s also my greenhouse, which I don’t think you’ve seen yet.” Gakushuu says. “I could show you my plants now that neither of us are busy.”

“Sure. How’s progress on the fighting dummy?”

“It’s… in the works. I had to move it for the sake of everyone else’s safety, so it’s in a shed near the ocean.”

“Well, alright. Let me know when it’s ready for testing.”

Karma had asked Gakushuu months ago whether he could create a fighter with adjustable levels for Karma to practice on. Gakushuu brought up the fact that it’s probably unethical to pay a real person for Karma to inevitably beat up, so he’s trying to strengthen a plant enough for Karma to fight against without getting bored.

“I wanted to ask,” Gakushuu says after a few more minutes of comfortable silence. “Are you staying today? If you are then there’s no rush to get you home.”

“Sure.” Karma shrugs. “But you don’t have any guest rooms. I’d rather not sleep on the couch unless I get totally wasted.”

“Oh, I thought—” Gakushuu cuts off, neck turning warm. “Well—”

Karma laughs. “I’m just messing with you, Shuu. I don’t mind sleeping together.”

Gakushuu frowns, “Hey.”

“What?”

“Why don’t you have any nicknames?”

“You drank your memory potion?”

“Yeah. And honestly, drunk-me brought up a good point, though ‘Kar’ is not very clever.”

“Maybe you could mess around with my last name instead?”

“I’m not calling you ‘Aka’, that’s the same amount of syllables as that in your first name.”

“Well, there’s ‘Bane’, ‘Karm’, ‘Kar-Kar’, ‘Kaba”, ‘Aba’…” Karma begins to list.

“They all sound embarrassing. You wouldn’t care if someone heard me call you ‘Kar-Kar’?” Gakushuu asks.

“It’s not as bad as Shoe, that’s for sure.”

“Then why do you call me that?”

“To piss you off, obviously. But now I guess it’s kind of grown on me.”

“Whatever. I’ll think of something. If I don’t, I guess we can just call you a red-headed idiot.”

“That’s more of an insult, but thanks.” 

They reach Gakushuu’s apartment building, and Gakushuu waves his hand over the sensor. His magical signature is picked up, and they’re brought over to Gakushuu’s room. 

“So where do you keep the greenhouse?” Karma asks, looking around. Gakushuu’s place may have had an open concept design, but there was definitely not enough space for an entire greenhouse. 

“Same place I keep my potions lab,” Gakushuu responds. “In an out-of-dimension space.”

“How does that work? Nobody can break in?”

“Well, it is only compatible with my magical signature, so I would be very surprised if someone did.”

“Hmm, why can’t I get that, then?” Karma asks. “What if they did something like, natural strength, or inner energy for the knights?”

“I guess that’s less unique to everyone. Every mage has their own magical signature, but fighters are just varying levels of 'tough'.”

Karma hmms, “well then, how big is this space?”

Gakushuu shrugs, “Depends on how much magical energy the user can spare for a few hours at a time without depleting their mana. I’ve got something about double this size, I’d say.” He gestures to his apartment.

“Does that mean I can put up my posters?” Karma, being a nerd, is referring to the posters of professional duelists that he’s had since grade school.

“Sure. Though I can’t guarantee they’ll stay intact.”

* * *

They enter the greenhouse, and Gakushuu gestures to the plants in the front row. “These are the ones I’m working on right now. They’re meant to be healing aids, since clerics are more rare nowadays.”

“What do they do?” Karma leans in, and sneezes at the pollen being spewed out by the leftmost one. 

“This one is a genetically-modified version of the common gardenia.” Gakushuu begins. Karma only momentarily regrets setting off Gakushuu on another one of his long-winded explanations—he should really know better by now—but he couldn’t deny that they were very informative, and also, Gakushuu has a nice voice. It was just so soft, but also unyielding and efficient. And it matches his personality perfectly—if someone were to hear his voice, they could surely estimate what kind of person—

“Any questions?” Gakushuu asks. Karma, once again, is more invested in the voice itself rather than the information that it’s giving, but Karma’s sure he’s heard enough to get the gist.

“No, I’m good,” Karma sniffs. He’s pretty sure he’s not sick, though his nose is suddenly stuffy. He rubs his eyes as Gakushuu moves on to the next one.

“This is a bit of a work in progress, it’s not quite creating the right DNA strands that I want, though I must admit the side effects of eating its inner petals—” Gakushuu suddenly stops and turns to look at Karma. “Are you alright?”

Karma was sneezing quite a bit now. “Yeah,” he says, though his voice sounds a bit scratchy.

“You’re allergic.” Gakushuu says. “To… pollen?”

“No, no, that’s wrong.” Karma rubs his eyes again. “I’ve never been allergic to anything in my whole life.”

“Well,” Gakushuu gestures to Karma. “Your leaking face says otherwise.” He conjures a tissue for Karma. 

Karma blows his nose, “It’s probably just a condensed… high-density plant, er, place.” He says. “It’ll probably pass. If I were really allergic, I would have known long ago, right?”

“You never lived in an area with a lot of fields,” Gakushuu counters. “It might just be that by the time the wind’s blown over all the pollen, the effect was a lot less pronounced.”

“But there’s _grass_ everywhere, yeah?” Karma sniffs. “I would have felt the effects from that.”

“Your eyes _did_ always look a bit more irritated in the spring.” Gakushuu says. “I always assumed you just started smoking or something.”

“Ugh, why would I do that?” Karma grimaces. “If I smoked I’d never make it in the dueling rings. It’s shit for lungs and you know that.”

“So you, wheezing and sniffing, isn’t?” Gakushuu crosses his arms, like how he always does whenever he feels like he’s won an argument. “And we go drinking once a week, so your liver is fine to ruin but not your lungs?”

Karma shrugs. “Alcohol tastes good. Nicotine doesn’t. And this is temporary. Once I adjust to the high magic content in this room I’ll probably be fine.”

“There’s no magic in this room.”

“Then what’s with the plants?”

“They’re non-magical ingredients to be put into a non-magical mixture which gives magical properties to the consumer.”

Karma sneezes. “Well then, I guess I’ll go back.” He’s never thought that he’d be allergic to anything, especially to something a mundane as _pollen_ , but he supposes that even the strongest fighters should have their weaknesses to even the playing field a bit.

Gakushuu snaps his fingers, and they appeared back in his kitchen. “I’ll start on dinner. What are we thinking?”

“I’d like pasta. And do you have any of that strawberry milk?”

Gakushuu makes a face, “I don’t drink milk, but I can make a last-minute grocery run.”

“Ah, right.” Karma hadn’t _forgotten_ , per say, but it’s easy to put the piece of information at the back of his mind whenever he sees Gakushuu eating meat or cheese. “Well then, I guess I’ll start on the dough?”

“As long as you don’t touch the stove. I don’t want my apartment set on fire today, thanks.” Gakushuu brushes his hair. “But first, maybe you should shower, and get the pollen off your skin.”

Karma sniffs. “Sure. I don’t have any clothes though, so there’s not too much point.”

“You can borrow mine. We’re almost the same size, and I have some oversized shirts that should fit you.”

“Thanks.” Karma walks over to the bathroom. Gakushuu drops off a hoodie and sweatpants. Karma looks at the clothes. “Huh, I didn’t know you owned anything casual, much less comfortable.”

“I’m human too, you know.” Gakushuu says. “I’d just never wear that in public.”

“Fair.” Karma closes the door as Gakushuu steps out to buy some tomato sauce and strawberry milk.

* * *

“So do you think we can do it?” Nagisa asks his friends. “It seems almost too early to face him.”

“It’s fine.” Karma shrugs. “After a certain point of training you kind of plateau, so there’s not too much point in wasting any more time.”

“And besides,” Gakushuu adds. “Karma’s been itching for a fight since last week. If we don’t set him loose now, _he’ll_ be the one destroying the towns.”

“Hey! Don’t talk about me like I’m some kind of dog!” Karma pouts. “Last I checked, you were just as impatient as I was to get this done and over with.”

“Well yes, because the Dark Lord gains strength exponentially, so it’s ideal to defeat him before it becomes too difficult.”

“Karasuma and Koro said that I’ll be fine. Irina said that I was ready months ago.” Nagisa frowns. “Though I only arrived about a month and a half ago, so I don’t see how the math adds up.”

“Irina doesn’t care much about trivialities.” Gakushuu says. “Never has, never will.”

“As long as we bring back the Big Bad’s head, or, well, something resembling a head, she’s all good.” Karma nods.

Kayano yelps, appearing in front of the group. “Sorry I’m late! Aguri had a last minute—oh nevermind, I’ll just bring you all there!” She stretches her arms outward, and the party is consumed with a blinding light.

They find themselves at the entrance to a dark cave, surrounded by rubble.

“What? No castle?” Nagisa asks, a little disappointed. “I thought that the Big Bad would find some fancy place to live in, like in all the stories.”

“There used to be a palace, but then Koro destroyed it.” Gakushuu explains. “That’s where all the rubble comes from.”

“Damn, that sounds fun,” Karma says wistfully. Gakushuu glares at him. 

“You should save that energy for the Dark Lord, don’t you think?” Gakushuu says, exasperated. 

“Hmm,” Karma smiles, and turns to Nagisa. “But _Nagisa_ , don’t you think that it would be better for us to destroy this cave opening? To lure the guy out, and stuff.”

“I don’t know.” Nagisa answers honestly. “Nobody in the past has done that, except Koro, I guess.”

“Koro destroyed it after he defeated the previous Lord.” Gakushuu says. “So we have no precedence of which to base our hypothesis off of.”

“So, we’re wingin’ it?” Karma grins. Gakushuu opens his mouth, armed with a counterpoint, but Karma continues before he could say anything. “If we can, _I’ll_ get the groceries today.”

“It was your turn anyways, but…” Gakushuu sighs, most likely realizing that there was no point in continuing such a fruitless argument. “Whatever. Just don’t use up all of your energy to break a few rocks.”

Karma cheers, and heads directly for a rock at the bottom of the cave. He swings his broadsword in a wide arc, and one side of the cave opening comes tumbling down. Karma then hits a falling rock with the blunt side of his sword, batting it to the other side. Karma jumps down from the heap of rocks, and admires the controlled destruction he’s caused. 

“Uh, Karma?” Kayano says. “You should probably get back here. The Big Bad’s probably going to blow up all the rocks to get out, and I don’t know whether you want to be—”

Before Kayano could finish speaking, a dark light is emitted from the inside of the cave, Karma dashes forwards, and is enveloped in a magic shield casted by Gakushuu just as the rocks reach him.

“Aww, thanks Shuu,” Karma says, returning to the group. “Though I don’t think I needed it. I can handle a hit from a rock.”

“Well, better safe than otherwise.” Gakushuu smiles. “If your ego causes me to die here, I’m haunting you for the rest of my life.”

“ _My_ ego? Have you ever seen yourself? You—” Karma begins, but is interrupted by Kayano smacking his shoulder. 

“Ugh, guys this isn’t the time!!” Kayano says. “Flirt on your own time, jeez!”

Karma sticks out his tongue at her, but takes his position in front of Nagisa anyways. 

“So, what do we think his specs are going to be like?” Nagisa asks. “‘Cause judging from that explosion… I’m pretty sure he’s quite a bit stronger than Takaoka.”

“But you’ve also improved, Nagisa!” Kayano says. “I’m not allowed to stay, or your victory might be declared null, but good luck!”

They wave goodbye to Kayano, who teleports away, as the monster from inside the cave emerges.

“Holy shit,” Nagisa says, staring upwards. “How did he _fit_ in that cave?”

He was easily 15 feet tall, and muscular enough to back it up. His face was covered, either by hair or by his magic, but one eye-sized glow comes from the area where his face should be. He almost resembled an octopus—that is, if octopodes were scraggly, hairy, and covered with a dark aura. The tentacles—there were definitely more than eight—circled around his aura like a malicious vice just waiting for their next victim. And Nagisa was right in its path.

“I’m assuming it’s the magic of his tentacles.” Gakushuu responds as an answer to Nagisa’s earlier question. “See how they don’t look quite attached? That means it’s likely some kind of mutation magic.”

“Does that create any trouble for us?” Karma asks, getting into his combat stance.

“Yes. Don’t try to cut them off, because they can easily be respawned. And he can use magic to create more, so don’t assume he’ll run out of weapons. And like the Goddess, I think it’s safe to assume his mana supply is nearly endless, so don’t count on tiring him out.” Gakushuu answers.

“Great.” Nagisa sighs, partially out of dejection, but also out of determination. “So we have a monster that doesn’t want to die.”

“Yeah, to an extent. Shuu?” Karma keeps his eyes locked on the monster, who seems to be analyzing them. 

“Yes?”

“Have you found his weak point yet?”

“My best guess would be his eye, though I’ll update you if any contrary evidence arises.”

“Great. Nagisa, your skill's all set, right?” Karma asks.

“Yeah! I can comfortably activate it whenever I want now.” Nagisa says. “I’ll do my best to hide from the Big Bad.”

“While you do that, Shuu and I will try to slow it down. It can’t tire out, mana-wise, but do you think we can try and deplete his stamina?”

“Our attacks had no effect on the Dark Lord’s aura last time.” Gakushuu frowns.

“Oh!” Nagisa exclaims. “I forgot to tell you guys, but Koro taught me how to temporarily imbue your weapons with a small amount of the holy magic that’s in my sword.”

He takes his sword, hovers it over Gakushuu and Karma’s respective weapons, and mutters a quick chant. 

“There you go!” Nagisa says. “It won’t be as effective as my sword, obviously, but some effect should at least go through now.”

“Great,” Karma's eyes light up as his sword sets itself on fire. The stone enchanted with the flames came from hell itself, or so Karma claims, so he has high confidence in the power that it wields. “So I keep slashing until the whole thing gets set on fire?”

“Well, maybe, uh,” Nagisa quickly interjects. “I _do_ have to get up there and stab out his eye, so maybe don’t set him on fire _too much_ , yeah?”

“Thank you Nagisa,” Gakushuu tests out the enchantment with a quick lightning spell. The monster lights up with electricity, and lets out a roar at the sensation. “Hmm. Not quite as much damage as I hoped, but it should be enough for Karma and I to effectively hold him off while you approach him.”

“Alright! Good luck, you guys!” Nagisa takes a deep breath. He was invisible. He didn’t feel anything. In fact, he barely had a strong enough heartbeat to stay alive, and that meant it was quiet enough that the monster couldn’t hear it. There were no sounds of any bloodlust, as his heart rate was perfectly normal. The monster would have no trouble overlooking him—a small, innocent, harmless boy from out of town.

“Damn, he’s gotten good,” Karma says, though Nagisa barely registers the sound. Right afterwards, Karma dashes to the monster, flaming sword in hand and vial in the other. 

He splashes the vial onto the monster, and it almost seems to melt. The form was still holding fine, but there was less of a sustenance to it for a second. Karma uses this moment to cut the monster with his sword, the flames spreading easily to the whole body now that it’s defenses were down.

“Sorry Nagisa, Shuu can put it out for you when you’re ready.” Karma says, though he doesn’t direct it in a specific direction since he’s not quite sure where Nagisa went.

“He’ll probably put it out on his own,” Gakushuu sighs, then begins to chant a long spell. It was likely a high-level one, based on how much his amulets were glowing. He finishes chanting. “Karma, on the count of three, you’ll want to move away from there.”

Karma didn’t need to be told twice. He knows the extent of Gakushuu’s power, and didn’t quite feel like enduring his magical attacks today. “How far?”

Gakushuu looks at the magic circles that’s formed above the monster’s head. The monster itself would be too big to move away, especially since it hasn’t noticed the magic yet from fending off Karma’s attacks. “Only about 20 yards, so don’t move too much.”

As soon as Gakushuu gives the distance, Karma begins to sprint. He just passed the threshold when the blue light came beaming down. The light fades, and the monster is seen frozen inside.

“Now, Nagisa!” Gakushuu shouts. The ice spell had been strong enough to dissipate Karma’s flames, though cracks were already appearing in the shell.

There is a small blur near the head of the monster, and as soon as the monster breaks through the ice it lets out an ear-piercing shriek. Nagisa's sword is planted firmly into its eye. 

Karma, who had begun approaching the monster after the spell was done being cast, quickly runs to Nagisa and throws him back to a safe distance. Right afterwards, he swallows a potion and jumps back, crossing hundreds of yards with ease. “Teleport us further, Shuu! It looks like it’s about to explode!”

Shuu didn’t need to be told twice. He teleports them a safe couple of miles away just as the darkness combusts.

Nagisa lets out a breath, “Did we do it?”

“That went a lot smoother than last time,” Gakushuu comments.

“Well, we were able to actually fight this time. And also, Nagisa’s skill came in use.” Karma says. “Come to think of it, it’s really embarrassing how the three of us struggled against a measly monster-human hybrid just a few weeks earlier.”

“Did anyone get hurt?” Nagisa asks.

“I can check,” Gakushuu holds up his hands, but then puts them back down. “Well, I _could_ check, but you’ll have to wait a few minutes for me to replenish some mana.”

“Physically, are we all good?” Karma says. “No blood, nothing broken, etc?” They all nod. “We should stay here though, just in case there’s something wrong that can only be detected with magic.”

“Why did he explode like that?” Nagisa asks. Gakushuu opens his mouth to explain, but Karma hushes him with one of those _you should be resting, leave this to me_ , kind of looks. 

“He’s full of the excess evil energy in the world. Every few years, it condenses and multiplies within itself.” Karma says. “He just exploded because that’s a nuclear reaction waiting to happen. There’s no stability with the Big Bads, since they’re just a lump of pure… pure darkness.”

“And that doesn’t happen naturally?”

“Didn’t anyone explain this to you?”

“Well, it was all in the books they gave me, but I couldn’t read any of it. Even now, I’ve only got the basic phrases of this language down.”

“Alright then. So anyways, it doesn’t happen naturally since he’s spreading that influence into other animals, and occasionally, people. Since he’s all spread out, there’s a bigger container to hold in all that magic. But as soon as you hit his weak spot, all of his essence came back in an attempt to protect him. Have you ever tried to blow air into a container that’s already full? Yeah, _boom_.”

“Huh. In any case, we beat him though.” Nagisa sighs again. “Gakushuu, are you feeling any better?”

“Well enough, though we have to wait for Kayano to return in order to teleport us back.” Gakushuu waves his hands over himself and his two companions. “We’re all clear. We made it far enough that the explosion didn’t infect us at all.”

“You guys!!” Kayano suddenly appears. “I just heard the news! You did it!!” She cheers. “So what did you name him?”

“Name?” Nagisa asks.

“They didn’t tell you?” Kayano stares down Gakushuu and Karma. “It’s a long-standing tradition for the Chosen One to name the Big Bad after it’s been slain! It ‘humbles us’, and stuff.”

“Koro named his ‘2’, probably because he couldn’t think of anything else, and the one he got had these claws that only had two fingers on them.” Karma says.

Nagisa deliberates this for a moment. “Well, how about ‘Shiro’?” He asks.

“What does that mean?” Kayano asks. “Is it Japanese?”

“Yeah, it means ‘white’,” Nagisa grins, cheeky and enthusiastic. 

“White…?” Kayano tilts her head. 

“It’s because the guy was pure black,” Karma explains. “He was so dark I swear he went into the negatives on the colour scale.”

“Ohh, well.” Kayano purses her lips in thought. “I guess it’s cute, though I don’t really get it since I wasn’t there.”

“Well then,” Gakushuu takes an empty vial and levitates the shattered pieces of Shiro’s eye into it. “We can bring these back now, as proof of our conquest. I’m sure the court wouldn’t mind if I keep these shards for personal experimentation.”

“Well then, you should pick up some of this goop too.” Karma gestures to the oozing lumps of monster that splattered across the field. “Couldn’t you use those too?”

“Hmm.” Gakushuu considers this. “Technically, it’s illegal to touch the stuff, since those lacking strength are susceptible to contamination, but… I don’t see the harm in breaking the law. Just this once.”

“There we go, I guess I’m a pretty bad influence after all,” Karma smiles. “My bad.”

“Of course, I’m still listing this on my report, I just doubt that the court would condemn me for the possession of this material.”

“Aw well, it still counts.” Karma waves his hand dismissively.

“Alright guys, are we ready to go?” Kayano says. When they all nod, she brings them back home with a _woosh_.

* * *

**10 years later**

“I don’t like that one.” Kayano leans over. “She cries too much.”

“Well, I do!” Nagisa says. “I think she’s charming, and she has Gakushuu’s eye colour.”

“What about someone with _my_ eye colour?” Karma asks. “Red eyes aren’t as common as purple are.”

Gakushuu sighs, “Remind me again why _these two_ are here to choose our future child? I can create a potion that creates a temporary womb… magic is a thing, you know.”

“Well, neither of us want to get pregnant, because that’s a hassle, and also I don’t like that.” Karma frowns. “Unless you’re actually against adoption?”

Gakushuu shakes his head no, “I just wonder why they’re choosing them like they're products in a store.” He gestures at Kayano and Nagisa, who were still bickering over the child in the basket next to theirs.

“Look at her cheeks! Aren't they cute?”

“They’re chubby!”

“All baby cheeks are chubby!”

Gakushuu sighs again. “I thought you two were against the idea of us raising any living beings.”

“That was until we saw you hatch and raise all those dragon eggs we picked up!” Kayano says. “How are they doing, by the way?”

Gakushuu waves his hand dismissively, “They’re running around somewhere. They’re wearing collars with a protection spell and our insignia on them, so they’ll be fine.”

Karma smiles at him. He’s trained their dragon pets well, and the town definitely knows by now not to mess with any large reptiles roaming around.

“It’s not _them_ I’m worried about,” Nagisa mutters, thinking of panicked townspeople and the inevitable stern talking-to that he was going to get from Koro and Karasuma. 

“And anyways, we took time out of our _very busy_ schedules to help you look for a kid!” Kayano pouts. “You should be more grateful for us.”

“You don’t even do anything,” Gakushuu points out. “You’ve been work-free for the past 10 years, and Nagisa only took on his role as a martial arts teacher for fun.”

Nagisa shrugs, “I need _something_ to do in my life. Otherwise, I’d get super bored!”

“Same,” Karma nods. “Even since the business started self-managing, I’ve been trying to get Gakushuu to come to the fights with me, but he always says no.” Karma pouts. “It’s been _years_ , Shuu! I’m sure it’s fine if you break the laws one or two times.”

Gakushuu glares at him. “Need I bring up that time when I got sent to court just because my dad got bored?”

“That was out of your control.” Karma shrugs. “If you’re going to be sent to court anyways, may as well go doing something fun.”

Gakushuu sighs, “You’re insufferable,” he says, though he rolls a finger over his wedding band, smiling.

“This one!” Kayano shouts suddenly. “She’s about 2 years old, and look! She has too much power, so you two would be the perfect pair to help her manage that!”

Karma looks at Gakushuu. “I don’t really care which one we take.” He says.

Gakushuu nods back, “Me neither. Though I don’t like the idea of baby window-shopping.”

Nagisa sighs, “We can always visit another orphanage.” he says. “There’s plenty of children looking for homes, though I don’t see the problem with just taking any one and leaving.”

“Well—” Kayano begins, but is interrupted by a ringing of bells, caused by a rustling of winds.

“Is that…?” Nagisa looks up, as though searching for the danger. 

Gakushuu smiles, “It's about time something exciting happened.”

“You can say that again,” Karma grins, eyes alight with the promise of adventure and action. “I wonder what kind of person the next Chosen One will be?”

Kayano flickers, and teleports away to greet the newcomer. Nagisa looks stunned, because _woah_ , an interdimensional rift was being created right in front of him, and the rush of power that flowed into the world was nearly overwhelming.

The wind blew so loudly that Nagisa could barely hear himself think. “Is the world _ever_ peaceful here?” Nagisa asks, though he already knew the answer.

Every ten years, the Dark Lord arises again. And every ten years, a group of adventurers looking for excitement go to defeat it. And Nagisa, Karma, and Gakushuu weren't planning on being left out of the party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know what happened with this fic, but hey, at least they're all happy.
> 
> So, a ~~quick~~ note about any future assassination classroom fics from me?  
> I've been getting into a lot of new stuff lately, like Dr STONE, and I think I'll start focusing on that a lot more. This isn't to say that I'll completely stop writing for ass class, but the amount will definitely decrease quite a bit. So if you've subscribed to me for that, I'd recommend unsubscribing if you don't want to be flooded with Dr STONE emails lol.
> 
> I do have a lot of Assassination Classroom stuff that I still want to get published, but I think a short break would be good for me to rekindle my love for the series. That being said though, it's possible that I'll occasionally write a short Karushuu drabble or two because I love these two dumbass geniuses.
> 
> Oops, that got a bit long, but feel free to talk to me about anything! My Tumblr inbox is open and you can contact me for discord information if you wanna discuss assassination classroom 5 years (at the time of writing this) after it's done airing haha.

**Author's Note:**

> Talk to me on [Tumblr](https://voicelesswaves.tumblr.com/), where I reblog my current interests and look for people to discuss cool stuff with! 
> 
> And hey, maybe consider leaving a comment? Letting me know how you felt about the work? Any and all criticism is welcome ( ~~as long as you're not too mean, please~~ )


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